Police broke up a pro-Palestinian student protest at the prestigious Sciences Po university in Paris, with 91 people escorted out of the building, police said on Friday.
The operation was calm and without incident, he said. A group of students has been demonstrating for days against their university’s position on the war in Gaza.
Protesters are calling for the creation of a commission of inquiry into Sciences Po’s partnerships with several Israeli universities, which they accuse of playing a direct or indirect role in violating the rights of people in the Gaza Strip.
The students accuse Israel of violating international law and committing “genocide” in the Gaza Strip in the midst of its ongoing military offensive in the isolated Palestinian coastal zone, triggered by the October 7 attacks.
Students from other Sciences Po campuses in France, as well as other French universities, have also recently organized protests in solidarity with the Palestinians, as pro-Palestinian student protests on US campuses appear to be spreading abroad.
On Thursday, Sciences Po management tried to put an end to the demonstrations by organizing an internal debate.
Later, the administration said it wanted to think about how the university should fundamentally position itself on political issues and conflicts and develop corresponding guidelines.
Following Friday’s latest protests, Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s office said strict action would be taken, according to media reports.
The ongoing war in Gaza was triggered by the October 7 attacks on Israel led by the Palestinian extremist organization Hamas. The militants killed around 1,200 people and kidnapped around 250 others to Gaza.
Israel responded with massive airstrikes and a ground offensive. Taking into account the high number of civilian victims and the catastrophic situation in the Gaza Strip, Israel has been the target of international criticism.
More than 34,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war so far.
