The student pro-Palestine protests in Switzerland have expanded. Now premises at the universities of Basel and Freiburg have also been occupied.
The Freiburg occupiers said it was a peaceful action. The group called for an “academic boycott” of all Israeli institutions and a ceasefire in the Palestinian territories. According to Keystone-SDA, around a hundred people took part in the occupation.
They also demanded that the University of Freiburg remove the memorial plaque for Chaim Weizmann and rename the Chaim Weizmann Conference organized by the Department of Chemistry. Weizmann, the first Israeli president, studied in Freiburg. The conference has existed since 2009.
The rectorate asked the occupiers to vacate the premises by the evening.
Interview offer in Basel
In Basel, students said they occupied the Bernouillanum. They also called for the university to assume its responsibility and suspend cooperation with Israeli institutions.
In the evening, the Rectorate announced that the University of Basel was ready to receive a delegation from the occupiers on Wednesday if they dissolve the occupation by Tuesday evening.