A congressional hearing on D.C.'s prior decision not to take action regarding George Washington University's pro-Palestinian encampment has been canceled after D.C. police cleared the area and arrested more than 30 people early Wednesday.

The big picture: This comes as university administrations have cracked down on student demonstrators in unprecedented ways as protests grow in size and intensity, with the majority of arrests happening at encampments and sit-ins.

• More than 2,900 people have been arrested at pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses across the country in recent weeks.

Driving the news: D.C. police began clearing the encampment Wednesday around 3am due to what police chief Pamela A. Smith described as an "escalation in the volatility of the protests" over the past few days.

• During the clearing, demonstrators clashed with police at least once, and police used pepper spray on protesters.
• Thirty-three people were arrested, including for unlawful entry and assault on a police officer, Smith said at a Wednesday morning press conference with Mayor Muriel Bowser. It's currently unclear how many of those arrested are GW students.

This comes after protesters marched to GW president Ellen Granberg's home Tuesday evening.

State of play: The arrests and cleared encampment happened hours before Bowser and Smith were supposed to testify before the Republican-led House Committee on Oversight and Accountability about why they'd previously denied GW's requests to clear the encampment.

• Rep. James Comer (R-Ky.), the committee chair, canceled the hearing after "a good conversation with Mayor Bowser" following the clearing, per his statement.
• Members of the congressional committee visited the encampment last week and held a press conference calling for its clearing.

The GW encampment was set up roughly two weeks ago, and protests had been largely peaceful.

• Previously, the biggest escalations between protesters and authorities came after demonstrators toppled police barricades and hung a Palestinian flag on a campus flagpole.

The encampment included student groups from other universities like Georgetown, American, Howard University, George Mason University, University of Maryland, University of Maryland-Baltimore County, and Gallaudet.

This is a developing story. Check back for details.