Thousands of academics call for end to Israeli collaboration

A coalition of more than 6,600 professors, researchers, university staff and students have signed an open letter urging Belgian universities to end all collaborations with Israeli institutions. Among the signatories are prominent figures such as outgoing deputy prime minister Petra De Sutter and war correspondent Rudi Vranckx, reports Belga News Agency.

The letter accuses Israeli universities of direct or indirect involvement in human rights violations and alleges complicity in what the signatories describe as an “ongoing genocide in Gaza”. It calls on Belgian universities, as public institutions, to sever ties with Israeli institutions and align their policies with international law.

This call for a boycott is described as the most significant collective denunciation of human rights violations in Gaza and Palestine from the Belgian academic community. The open letter has been signed by 29 deans, 64 department heads, 1,107 professors, 1,518 researchers, 634 administrative staff and 3,290 students.
Full report on the Belga News Agency site