A gathering that riled Duke University alumni, tested free speech and cost the school more than $50,000 for security ended Sunday in peace.

As the afternoon sun fell behind Duke's Gothic-style buildings, about 60 attendees of the Palestine Solidarity Movement conference marched to a residential quad, shouted support for Palestinians and urged the end of U.S. aid to Israel.

About 17 protesters, behind a metal barricade in the area guarded by police, chanted in rebuttal, "Condemn terror now."

It was a far calmer conclusion to the three-day event than officials had prepared for. It was expected to be confrontational, and rumors had spread that bus loads of protesters were heading to the campus. More than 100 officers were on hand to deal with throngs that never came.

One of the more tense moments came Sunday morning when someone called in a bomb threat. Officials investigated and determined the call to be a hoax. "In the end, I'm very proud of what's happened here," said John Burness, Duke's senior vice president for public affairs.

Organizers said more than 500 people attended the Palestine Solidarity Movement conference. Activists and historians discussed the struggles of the Palestinian people, the escalation of violence, and likened Zionism to apartheid in South Africa. They discussed strategy for advancing their efforts and educating others in sessions closed to the media.

"People were respectful of each other," Burness said. "It's a good thing we did here."

It wasn't without controversy. The Palestine Solidarity Movement is a confederation of students that urges universities to sell stock in companies that do business in Israel. Because members side with Palestinians, they draw fire from those who support Israel in a divisive conflict where peace is elusive.

Some Duke alumni threatened to pull donations to the university. More than 90,000 people signed an online petition in opposition to the event. Duke received 1,000 letters and e-mail messages, including one that threatened violence against the conference.

Free speech triumphs

Duke President Richard Brodhead decided to let organizers proceed, saying that denying the conference would stymie free speech and eliminate an opportunity for educational dialogue.

The university facilitated several other happenings during the week, including the display of a burned-out bus from a suicide bomb in Israel and a pro-Israel teach-in Saturday at Duke's Freeman Center for Jewish Life.

Duke faculty said the campuswide discussion of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict had been an educational gain for everyone.

"I think it's been a great thing for students and faculty," said Michael Munger, chairman of Duke's political science department. He said the issue was discussed in and out of class, and the student newspaper had been full of opinions about the conflict.

The conversation, he said, will likely continue. "A number of students just aren't sure what to think about it," Munger said.

How many actually have a better understanding is hard to judge. Some students and attendees complained that the conference and other events were too divisive, espousing extreme views on either side of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

It would have been better, they said, to have a constructive dialogue in a common setting.

"I feel like the conference was needed so people know what is happening," said Selin Dilmener, a Duke sophomore from Turkey who came out to the residential quad when she heard the shouting. "This is not the way they should try to resolve the issue, by protesting. I find this absurd."

Meanwhile Sunday, a handful of protesters stood their ground outside.

"Whatever the size of the protest is, it will only grow, and it must grow," said Janet Lehr, who publishes a daily e-mail newsletter called "Israel Lives" and flew to Duke from New York. "There is no interest in developing a dialogue on their part."

To others, discourse was occurring through the shouts and protests. Those passing by could learn from the competing views.

"I think both sides are preaching to the converted," said Dana Greene, an assistant professor of sociology and social work at Appalachian State University who attended the conference. "That it brings people out to question, I think is a good thing."

And over the long term, it could lead to some resolution.

"To resolve anything in half an hour or an hour over a fence? No," said Fayyad Sbaihat, a spokesman for the conference. "But we have people meeting each other." That, he said, eventually could lead to constructive conversations.