The activist organization demanded that Sciences Po “takes a principled stance by sending an official communication condemning the actions of Israel that infringe upon the rights and well-being of Palestinians” and for the university to cut ties with “institutions or entities that uphold Zionist ideologies.”
In echoes of the U.S., pro-Palestinian student movements are organizing across France, with blockades and encampments being set up on university campuses amid an increasingly tense environment as Israel’s monthslong war on Hamas in Gaza drags on.
In a text message, the Comité Palestine Sciences Po told POLITICO that the protesters were offered by the university’s administration to remain inside a cafeteria without “any exterior contact.” The movement’s organizers refused the proposal which, they said, would’ve made it impossible to “stock up on food or talk to the press.”
The students were “peacefully evacuated” by police forces around noon Friday, the committee said.
Protesters on college campuses across the U.S. have set up encampments in opposition to Israel’s war, drawing a White House intervention and leading to police action this week which resulted in scuffles and arrests.
“Threatening people, intimidating people, instilling fear in people is not peaceful protest,” U.S. President Joe Biden said Thursday. “Dissent must never lead to disorder.”
