Pro-Palestinian activists, who have been occupying Ghent University's UFO building, expanded their protest to the rectorate on Wednesday morning. They are demanding a complete academic boycott of Israel.
Tents were set up, and slogans were spray-painted on the rectorate building on Wednesday. Police are present at the scene, Belga News Agency reports.
Several UGent campuses were covered with red paint and pro-Palestinian slogans earlier this week. The university filed a complaint in response.
Silent protest at UGent on Friday 3 May. Credit: End Fossil Gent
The activists have been protesting for weeks, opposing UGent's collaborations with Israeli institutions. The activists have outlined three key demands: end all existing collaborations, refrain from starting new partnerships, and lobby to exclude Israel from the European research programme Horizon Europe.
Last week, the university's board decided to withdraw from five "problematic" projects involving Israeli partners.
However, the activists have said the decision does not go far enough. They are demanding a complete academic boycott of Israel, and say it is an essential tool to exert pressure.
