Pro-Palestinian activists staged a protest at Ghent University’s (UGent) rectorate building in Belgium on Wednesday, calling for a full academic boycott of Israel, Belga News Agency reported.
The activists said the university’s recent decision to phase out five research collaborations with Israeli partners was insufficient and called for all ties to be severed.
“Not just 5, cut all ties,” read one of the slogans sprayed on the building, referring to the university’s decision to end five Horizon research projects it deemed problematic.
The Ghent University said it continues to maintain a limited number of collaborations with partners it does not consider involved in serious human rights violations.
READ: Belgian university to withdraw from 5 EU education projects involving Israeli partners
It added that some projects listed on the European research platform CORDIS are not considered direct institutional cooperation.
Rector Petra De Sutter said she personnally believes Israel should no longer participate in the EU’s Horizon Europe research program, noting that such decisions fall under the authority of the European Commission.
The university condemned the protest and said it would seek the removal of the activists through legal proceedings, citing acts of vandalism.
The academic institution in Ghent announced last week that it would withdraw from five remaining EU Horizon research projects involving Israeli partners, following a board decision to exit those collaborations.
The university said the move marked the final phase of its withdrawal from such partnerships, but that some limited cooperation would continue.
READ: On the Anniversary of the Nakba: Calls to End the War on Gaza and Suspend the Partnership with Israel
