Amid the spreading anti-Jewish and anti-Israel protests and turmoil on American campuses, similar student protests have erupted in Europe, leading to the temporary closure of the alma mater of French President Macron and triggering large-scale police dispersal operations.
On Friday, Paris police entered Sciences Po, the famed Paris Institute of Political Studies, to peacefully evacuate protesting students who had occupied the school’s teaching building overnight. Reports indicate that the protests in France have remained peaceful, with no signs of violence as students were led out of the building.
Approximately 70 pro-Palestinian students, under the banner of the “Comité Palestine Sciences Po,” occupied this prestigious university dubbed as the “cradle of French political elite,” according to Reuters.
Sciences Po has become a focal point for student anti-Israel protests in France, with protests spreading across the country, although on a smaller scale compared to the U.S.
The pro-Palestinian organization at Sciences Po, the “Comité Palestine Sciences Po,” demanded the university to “formally condemn Israel” and cut ties with “institutions or entities that uphold Jewish nationalist ideology.”
Sciences Po’s President Jean Bassères rejected the protesters’ demands on Thursday.
Subsequently, the pro-Palestinian group occupied a main building in central Paris, leading the school’s administration to announce the closure of its main facilities with a heavy police presence stationed around the building.
According to interviews by Agence France-Presse with protesting students, 22-year-old protester Bastian stated that he and others were peacefully escorted by police in groups of 10. Another student pursuing a master’s degree, Lucas, mentioned, “Some students were dragged, while others were grabbed by the head or shoulders.”
The pro-Palestinian group at Sciences Po stated that around noon on Friday, students were peacefully evacuated by the police, according to Politico Europe.
In a reflection of the U.S., the pro-Palestine student movement in France is gaining traction, organizing blockades and encampments on university campuses across the country.
French Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s office stated that protesting students had been evacuated from 23 higher education institutions on Thursday, emphasizing that unlike what is seen in the U.S., there are no permanent protest camps at French universities.
Attal previously mentioned their efforts to prevent violent incidents at domestic universities similar to those in the U.S., asserting that students will not be granted “blockade rights” and attributing the protests to an “active, dangerous minority seeking to impose an ideology from across the Atlantic.”
Valérie Pécresse, the President of the Regional Council of Île-de-France where Paris is located, announced a “temporary suspension” of all funding to Sciences Po until “calm and safety are restored.”
Elsewhere in Europe, including in Germany, Italy, and the UK, campuses have also seen protests in support of Palestine.