Gaza protesters disrupt Sorbonne University in Paris

Paris police attack Palestine camp set-up by Sorbonne University students

Students at Paris' elite Sorbonne University emulated their counterparts in the US by setting up a Palestine camp in the 17th century courtyard of the prestigious institution. Outside the courtyard,… pic.twitter.com/l1XDH5mjeQ

— Middle East Monitor (@MiddleEastMnt) April 29, 2024

Protesters angry over Israel’s war against the Palestinians in Gaza chanted “Free Palestine” at the gates of Sorbonne University in Paris on Monday, Reuters has reported. Some students also set up protest tents in the courtyard.

Days after similar protests at Paris’s Sciences Po elite school, the protest at the Sorbonne was the latest sign that pro-Palestine demonstrations on US campuses are spilling over to Europe with the devastating war in its seventh month.

The protests, which led the university to close the building for the day, were peaceful as students urged the institution — one of the world’s oldest universities — to condemn Israel’s actions.

According to Reuters, police were securing the street where the main entrance is. They faced a group of around 50 students.

Several French politicians, including Mathilde Panot, who heads the hard-left LFI group of lawmakers in the National Assembly, called upon supporters on social media to join the Sorbonne protests.

Israel has killed at least 34,488 Palestinians in its assault in Gaza, most of them children and women, and wounded 75,000. The occupation state launched its offensive after a cross-border incursion by Hamas during which 1,200 Israelis were killed, many of them by Israel Defence Forces helicopters and tanks, local media reported.

READ: Gaza devastation extends far beyond those killed by Israeli bombs and air strikes, says MSF