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By: The Nightly Crew
1/17/2026
Photo of a Palestinian flag at a demonstration on 1/17/26, photo provided by SUPER UW.
An Update on the UW33
As of January 7th, 20 students associated with the nationally recognized Students United for Palestinian Equality & Return (SUPER) who were suspended last spring have had their suspensions end in recent days, according to a spokesperson from the organization who spoke with The Nightly. SUPER was the organizer of the May 5th, 2025, occupation of the Interdisciplinary Engineering Building (IEB) because of the University’s complicity in the genocide in Gaza. Specifically, students were protesting the university's long and intimate partnership with the war-profiteer Boeing, which contributed $10 million to the new IEB construction project. The University bragged about this in 2022. Boeing was the top U.S. manufacturer of missiles and ammunition delivered to Israel from 2021 to 2023.
On May 5th, students entered and occupied the IEB, proclaiming the building name to be the “Shaban al-Dalou Building,” in protest of the University’s collaboration with Boeing in its recent construction. Shaban al-Dalou was a 19-year-old Palestinian student who burned to death while donating blood at a Hospital in israeli bombings. The occupation was ended with 23 students and 10 community members being reportedly brutalized by officers of the Seattle Police Department, Washington State Patrol, and University of Washington Police, according to organizers. On May 7th, 2025, the University of Washington, under former President Cauce, suspended 21 students under WAC 478–121–140. The majority of these students remained suspended without any formal ruling from UW or criminal charges for almost 8 months until recent days. According to a source, the 20 students of the UW33 were found guilty of two “minor” charges, and one student received an additional third charge, of the five original charges filed by the Office of Community Standards & Student Conduct (CSSC). Given the CSSC charges students were found guilty of, we find it appalling what the state did to these students, with dozens of cops inflicting ongoing pain and various suspensions and financial impacts to student livelihoods.
"Shaban al-Dalou Building" Projected on a UW Building, Shaban al-Dalou, was a 19 year old Palestinian student who burned to death while donating blood at a Hospital in israeli bombings. Photo has been provided by SUPER UW.
A summary of the charges and findings for 20 students was provided by the spokesperson from SUPER, which we have formatted with the information provided. We hope CSSC will confirm, but they have not yet responded for comment:
Not Guilty: Abuse of others
Not Guilty: Aiding and assisting
Not Guilty (1 person guilty): Disruption or obstruction
Guilty: Failure to comply
Guilty: Unauthorized use (of the building).
As a reminder to our readers unfamiliar with the May 5th action that occupied the IEB, the actions of law enforcement brutality and student suspensions have resulted in various serious impacts on the lives of these students. This has resulted in a student being evicted from campus housing, students being banned from their on-campus jobs, financial harm to many students, and students being prevented from graduating, according to SUPER, see testimony here.
SUPER has been the organizing body of various other actions, including the 2024 blockade on I-5 to disrupt American complicity in genocide. SUPER has remained suspended as an RSO since December 13th 2024 after being charged with "vandalism,” “unauthorized keys, entry, or use,” “failure to comply,” and “disruption and obstruction,” by the Community Standards & Student Conduct Office under former President Cauce, according to a post from SUPER, and that suspension been extended to be permanent according to a spokesperson from SUPER. Such a suspension, according to UW spokesperson Victor Balta, who said to The Daily, is that an “RSO does not have access to support and resources that are available to [student] groups that are in good standing. It does not restrict a group from gathering or speaking in public spaces on campus.”
This all comes as the IOF continues to violate the western-backed ceasefire, which the U.S. special envoy to the Middle East, Steve Witcoff, has proclaimed has moved into its “2nd phase.” The IOF, according to Al Jazeera, has reportedly martyred at least 451 Palestinians, including over 100 children, through 1193 ceasefire violations, since the ceasefire began on October 10th. This second phase includes a “Board of Peace,” with various global figures, including some who we believe are extremely entangled in Western imperialism, including the board chair, President Trump, and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Photo reads: "257 DAYS AGO, ALL SUSPENSIONS OVER, NATIONAL ATTENTION SPREAD, ZERO CHARGES FILED," a parody of KOMO reporting. Photo edited by The Nightly.
What does this mean for the student Intifada?
Much to the dismay of Seattle news agency KOMO, who have repeatedly published articles since May regarding the UW33, zero criminal charges have been filed to public knowledge, even nearly 8 months later, by the King County Prosecutor’s Office. We at The Nightly echo calls by SUPER to demand that the University publicly recommend that no charges be filed by the King County Prosecutor’s office. In our opinion, the damage inflicted on these students' lives, for their actions to obstruct the atrocities committed by the IOF, to whom Boeing sells their military technologies, has already surpassed any sort of impact the state should have taken against these students. Which is not to say that the state has any standing to speak of “justice” in the face of countless reprehensible imperialist actions that have affected and ended lives around the globe.
In SUPER’s statement released this afternoon, many financial impacts continue to affect the lives of these students. SUPER shared in their statement that "Nothing justifies 8 months of suspension, loss of jobs, housing, and community on campus, the police brutality sustained, and the $200,000+ lost/repaid to UW.” SUPER also shared that the University is demanding repayment of financial aid and grant money from suspended students from the spring quarter of 2025, amounting to over $60,000. This is appalling to us here at The Nightly, given what these students have already been put through by the University, and that they were unable to complete their spring quarter because of the school’s suspension. SUPER calls on the community to contact UW Fiscal Services and the UW Office of Financial Aid to demand that the tuition costs be dropped from the spring quarter and to clear restrictions on financial aid eligibility.
It is clear to us at The Nightly that the University’s actions to brutalize, suspend, and inflict harm on the financial lives of these community members were completely careless and dangerous. The University is, for one, complicit in genocide in Gaza through their intimate relationship with Boeing, and two, spending school resources suppress and damage the lives of the student organizers who are calling on the University to cut ties. We call upon all readers to continue to condemn any sort of relationship between UW and Boeing, and continue their support for a liberated Palestine.
Long live the student Intifada!
This is a developing story; we have secured possible interviews with SUPER, and will keep readers updated. We have reached out to the Office of Community Standards & Student Conduct for comment, but they did not respond immediately. The Nightly does not endorse any organizational statements we publish.
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