French Police Remove Pro-Palestinian Protesters Occupying Sorbonne University Courtyard

On April 29, 2024, around 100 pro-Palestinian students demonstrated near the Sorbonne university in Paris, following similar protests at Sciences Po, another elite university in the French capital region. The protesters set up tents in the main courtyard of the Sorbonne and unveiled a giant Palestinian flag, chanting slogans in support of Palestinians in Gaza.

French police removed dozens of protesters from the university grounds in the early afternoon. A graduate student at the Sorbonne, Lorelia Frejo, said the police used force to remove the peaceful protesters from the courtyard without explanation. "The evacuation was quite brutal, with around ten people being dragged to the ground, though no arrests were made," Frejo stated.

The protest at the Sorbonne came on the heels of demonstrations last week at the Paris Institute of Political Studies (Sciences Po), where pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli students faced off in a tense standoff before riot police intervened to separate the groups. Students at Sciences Po later agreed to call off further protests in return for an "internal debate" about the university's ties to Israel, and the university agreed to drop all disciplinary proceedings against the demonstrators.

The protests at the Sorbonne and Sciences Po were inspired by similar encampments and solidarity demonstrations across the United States supporting Palestinians, as Israel continues its offensive in Gaza following a deadly Hamas attack. The Sorbonne occupies a unique place in French public and intellectual life, and the university was recently chosen by President Emmanuel Macron as the venue to deliver a speech on his vision of Europe ahead of the European Parliament elections.

Why this matters: The pro-Palestinian protests at elite French universities highlight the growing tensions and debates around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict on university campuses, both in Europe and the United States. These demonstrations reflect the increasing global solidarity with Palestinians and the calls for universities to condemn Israel's actions in Gaza.

Several French politicians, including Mathilde Panot who heads the hard-left LFI group of lawmakers in the National Assembly, urged their supporters to join the Sorbonne protests. The head of the Paris region, Valérie Pécresse, suspended funding for Sciences Po "until calm and security have been restored" following last week's protests. The demonstrations at the Sorbonne and Sciences Po underscore the ongoing tensions surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its impact on university campuses worldwide.

Key Takeaways

• Pro-Palestinian students protested at Sorbonne & Sciences Po in Paris in April 2024.
• Police forcibly removed protesters from Sorbonne, but no arrests were made.
• Protests inspired by similar pro-Palestinian demonstrations across the U.S. and Europe.
• French politicians urged supporters to join Sorbonne protests, while a regional leader suspended funding for Sciences Po.
• Protests highlight growing tensions around Israeli-Palestinian conflict on university campuses worldwide.