One year after Israel’s war on Gaza began, students at Sciences Po University in Paris staged a pro-Palestine protest. They marched through the streets and held sit-ins on campus.
PARIS (AP) — Numerous students were taken out of the Sorbonne University by French police on Monday after pro-Palestinian demonstrators took over the school’s main courtyard in Paris.
In support of Palestinians, about fifty protestors set up tents in the Sorbonne University courtyard at noon on Monday, echoing similar encampments and solidarity demonstrations across the country.
Demonstrators unveiled a massive Palestinian flag and chanted pro-Palestinian slogans as Israel keeps up its offensive in the wake of the deadly Hamas attack on October 7 that started the Israeli-Hamas conflict. Early in the afternoon, police entered the university grounds and took them out.
About a hundred protestors participated in the demonstration outside the prestigious university amid a heavy police presence that was also watching the entrance to the campus to keep students from camped out there once more.
Graduate student Lorelia Frejo of the Sorbonne, who participated in a demonstration outside the school, claimed that police had physically removed her peers from the courtyard. Frejo stated, “They Were Calm And The Police Took Them Out Without Any Justification.” She said, “Students in Paris Were Inspired By The Columbia University Protesters Who Remain Steadfast Despite Police Pressure.”
“They (the Columbia demonstrators) are incredibly powerful and aspire to fight for peace and justice in Palestine,” said Frejo.
The Sorbonne Holds A Special Position At The Center Of French Intellectual And Public Life. In advance of the June European Parliament elections, President Emmanuel Macron selected it as the location for his speech last week outlining his vision for the continent.
Protests occurred last week at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, also known as Sciences Po, an elite university in the French capital region that boasts a number of well-known alumni, including Prime Minister Gabriel Attal and President Macron.
Tensions had arisen on campus when pro-Palestinian students attempted to take over an amphitheater, motivated by Gaza Solidarity Encampments on US campuses.
Pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinian protestors engaged in a tense standoff in the street outside the school on Friday. Riot police intervened to divide the opposing factions.
When the students decided to leave the building late on Friday, the protest came to an end peacefully. The head of science said that a consensus had been reached with the students.
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