In videos shared on social media, Oliver Owcza and a delegation are hurrying away from the venue as a large group of jeering students run behind him, yelling at him to “Go!”
Germany’s ambassador to the Palestinian Authority was forced to flee on Tuesday from the Palestine National Museum by a group of Birzeit University students, north of Ramallah in the occupied West Bank.
In videos shared on social media, Owcza and a delegation are hurrying away from the venue as a large group of jeering students run behind him, yelling at him to “Go!”
As his convoy attempts to drive off, his vehicle is surrounded by students who hurl objects at the car, and then stone it as it drives off.
Germany remains one of the staunchest supporters of Israel’s military assault on the Gaza Strip, as well as one of Tel Aviv’s biggest arms suppliers.
Last month, Nicaragua filed a case against Germany at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) “for violations of the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of Crime of Genocide,” concerning Berlin’s financial and military aid to Israel in its ongoing war on Gaza.
On Tuesday, the ICJ ruled against issuing emergency orders. “The circumstances are not such as to require the exercise of its power under Article 41 of the statute to indicate provisional measures,” Presiding Judge Nawaf Salam said.
Students at @BirzeitU in the occupied West Bank forcefully expelled the German ambassador Oliver Owcza from their university museum.
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— The Palestine Chronicle (@PalestineChron) April 30, 2024
‘Global Intifada’
On Monday, Birzeit University (BZU) students and staff rallied in support of “our families in Gaza” as well as the global student movement “that’s calling for the end of the genocide and for holding the Israeli occupation accountable for its crimes,” according to BZU’s X page.
In a statement, the Union of Professors and Employees of Birzeit University said it defended “the right of all Palestinian scholars and scholars worldwide to live and work in freedom.”
“Across the globe, we are witnessing the results of this fascist campaign brutally attempting to silence and erase any and all voices who speak about and for our just struggle,” the statement added. “Getting free in Palestine is now a global intifada centered in academic institutions and led by students.”
#BZU students in solidarity to our families in #Gaza, and a salute to #the_global_student_movement that's calling for the end of the genocide and for holding the Israeli occupation accountable for its crimes.#FreePalestine#stopthegenocide pic.twitter.com/iUoae5M3HM
— Birzeit University (@BirzeitU) April 29, 2024
“We are part of reclaiming university campuses to spaces of learning, knowledge and the politics of justice and freedom. From Turtle Island to Palestine, students and academics are fighting for life in Gaza and throughout Palestine,” it further said.
Students’ demands for ‘Divest and Disclose’ on campuses throughout many universities across the globe “are a clear indication that the struggle for life and justice in Palestine is a universal struggle.”
“The global intifada will no doubt continue to grow and campuses across the world, including in the Arab world, will gather and scream in the face of fascism.”
On Sunday, staff and students at the An-Najah National University in the West Bank city of Nablus also held a demonstration in solidarity with Palestinians in the besieged Gaza Strip.
The university’s spokesperson, Riad al-Dabai, underlined the importance of “supporting Gaza, which was exposed to the genocidal war, and the victory of the Palestinian people,” reported the Anadolu news agency.
‘Student Intifada’ – Gaza’s Students Express Solidarity with US Students’ Protests
Hundreds Arrested
Meanwhile, student movements in the Gaza Strip have saluted the students on American campuses for transforming their universities into “Popular Universities for Gaza.”
Protests began at Columbia University on April 17 and have since spread to more than 20 universities and colleges across the US and elsewhere, with hundreds of students arrested.
Columbia University announced on Monday the suspension of several students who refused to comply with a deadline to end the sit-in.
University President Nemat Minouche Shafik stated that negotiations with the protesters have reached an impasse, and insisted that the university would not reconsider its investment policies regarding Israel.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
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