Students in Nordic Countries, Netherlands Join Global Uprising against Israeli War in Gaza
Though some western governments are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, many continue to support Israel politically and militarily in its ongoing war.
A wave of university campus protests across Europe and the US expressing solidarity with Palestinians over the war in Gaza has reached Nordic countries, according to media reports.
In Finland, dozens of protesters from the Students for Palestine solidarity group have reportedly erected an encampment outside the main building at the University of Helsinki.
They are demanding that the institution cut ties with Israeli universities, including terminating all exchange student agreements and research cooperation.
According to the demonstrators, Israeli universities, particularly Tel Aviv University and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, have been involved in developing weapons technologies used in Gaza and in training military personnel in cooperation with the Israeli army.
Finnish higher education institutes should follow those in Norway, where five universities cut ties with Israel in February, protesters say. They have warned the demonstration will continue until their demands are met.
In Denmark, students have also set up a pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Copenhagen. About 45 tents have been reportedly installed on the lawn outside the Faculty of Social Sciences campus.
The university said students could protest but called on them to respect the rules on campus grounds. “Seek dialogue, not conflict and make room for perspectives other than your own,” the administration stated on X.
The pro-Palestine group argued their attempts to talk to the administration over the past two years about withdrawing investments from Israeli companies have been in vain.
“We can no longer be satisfied with cautious dialogue that does not lead to concrete action,” the group stated on its Facebook page.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations are expected in Sweden’s third-largest city, Malmo, which is set to host the Eurovision Song Contest.
Sweden is reportedly tightening security ahead of the protests, giving police larger weapons and bringing in reinforcement officers from Denmark and Norway.
Demonstrations in Malmo are planned for May 9, when Israel will take part in the second Eurovision semi-final, and May 11, the day of the final. Protesters say they will challenge Israel’s participation in the contest.
The reports on growing pro-Palestine protests come as Israeli tanks have entered the city of Rafah in southern Gaza to carry out what Tel Aviv described as “a precise counterterrorism operation” against Palestinian Resistance fighters.
Elsewhere in Europe, police demolished the protest camp of anti-war protesters at the University of Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
The pro-Palestine students had built their encampment to join thousands of students across the world who are demanding immediate accountability from their universities to divest from Israel and to cut ties with Israeli educational institutions.
The protesters, however, were attacked overnight by a group of pro-Israeli hooligans. Immediately after the clash the police came in and dispersed the students, destroying their camp.
Though some western governments are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, many continue to support Israel politically and militarily in its ongoing war.
Gaza Genocide
Currently on trial before the International Court of Justice for genocide against Palestinians, Israel has been waging a devastating war on Gaza since October 7.
According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, 34,789 Palestinians have been killed, and 78,204 wounded in Israel’s ongoing genocide in Gaza.
Moreover, at least 11,000 people are unaccounted for, presumed dead under the rubble of their homes throughout the Strip.
Palestinian and international organizations say that the majority of those killed and wounded are women and children.
The Israeli war has resulted in an acute famine, mostly in northern Gaza, resulting in the death of many Palestinians, mostly children.
The Israeli aggression has also resulted in the forceful displacement of nearly two million people from all over the Gaza Strip, with the vast majority of the displaced forced into the densely crowded southern city of Rafah near the border with Egypt – in what has become Palestine’s largest mass exodus since the 1948 Nakba.
Israel says that 1,200 soldiers and civilians were killed during the Al-Aqsa Flood Operation on October 7. Israeli media published reports suggesting that many Israelis were killed on that day by ‘friendly fire’.
(RT, PC)