Spanish universities consider severing ties with Israeli institutions

(Patria) - Spanish universities expressed on Thursday their readiness to sever ties with any Israeli educational institution that has not expressed a "clear commitment to peace", AFP reported.

Student protests have spread across Western Europe in recent weeks, with demonstrators demanding an end to the bloodshed in Gaza and a break in ties with Israel, mirroring protests that have swept through American campuses.

In a statement, the governing council of university chancellors (CRUE) condemned the violence and expressed support for the protests that have recently erupted on Spanish campuses. Demanding an immediate end to Israeli actions in Gaza, they pledged to "review ties and, if necessary, suspend cooperation with Israeli universities and research centers that have not expressed a firm commitment to peace and respect for international humanitarian law".

But the diplomatically worded statement did not go far enough to appease students at several protest camps that have sprung up across Spain, which have been peaceful so far.

"What we really want is for the government and university rectors to meet our demands and break ties with Israel," said Sebastian Gonzalez, a law and political science student at Complutense University in Madrid. "When our demands are met, we will dismantle the camp. Until then, we will continue to resist here and throughout Spain," said Gonzalez, a spokesperson for the demonstrators.

In Spain, the first protest began on April 29 at the University of Valencia in the east, with students setting up about twenty tents demanding an "end to the genocide in Gaza". This was followed by a similar protest at the University of Barcelona, and this week, camps have spread to Madrid, northern Basque Country, Alicante in the east, and the southern region of Andalusia.

The war in Gaza began on October 7 when Hamas attacked Israel, killing more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians. Israel launched an offensive in which about 35,000 people have been killed, mostly children and women. The violence has triggered a wave of pro-Palestinian protests that have shaken American campuses for weeks with an intensity not seen in decades, and then spread to European cities and even Australia.