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Israeli aggression against Rafah

A senior UN official says Israel is killing and starving Palestinians in the Gaza Strip by closing the territory’s crossings and preventing the world body from helping them. The UN humanitarian chief said the Israeli military does not allow anything or anyone to go in or get out of Gaza after taking over the territory’s southern Rafah crossing. Martin Griffiths said the closure of Gaza’s crossings means no fuel, no trucks, no generators, no water, no electricity and no movement of people or goods. The Israeli occupation forces seized Gaza's Rafah crossing last Tuesday, halting the flow of aid into the besieged territory. Meanwhile, the head of the UN humanitarian office in the occupied Palestinian territories says Israel's closure of key Gaza crossings has rendered humanitarian operations all but impossible. The official added that there are no stocks of fuel in Gaza and this has crippled the delivery of any relief aid to the territory.

Columbia campus protest

Nearly 2,000 of Columbia University alumni in the US have vowed to end all financial, programmatic and academic support for the university. They say they will go ahead with this decision unless students’ demands, especially with regard to cutting the university’s ties with Israel, are met. The alumni made the announcement in a letter to the university’s president. They said Columbia must divest from all companies and institutions that fund or profit from Israeli apartheid, genocide and occupation in Palestine. They also want the university to drop all changes and disciplinary actions against pro-Palestine students, while ending the presence of police officers on the campus. The university has been also urged to hold accountable those faculty members, administrators, and other officials who have harassed and assaulted students. Over 1,700 alumni have so far signed the letter. The decision will put at risk a total of over 74-million dollars in financial contribution to the university. The figure keeps rising as the number of signatories increases.

Cutting Israel ties

Nearly eighty Spanish universities are considering suspension of ties with Israeli educational institutions following days of university encampments across the country. In a statement, the university chancellors' governing board, which represent 76 universities, threw its support behind recent protests on Spanish campuses. The board vowed they’re ready to suspend cooperation with Israeli universities and research centers that have failed to express a clear commitment to peace and respect for international humanitarian law. The statement also vowed to intensify cooperation with the Palestinian scientific system and expand programs for the refugee population. During recent weeks, student protests have gathered pace across Western Europe with protesters demanding an end to the Gaza genocide and severance of ties with Israel. They’ve taken their cue from pro-Palestine protests that have swept US campuses. On Wednesday, Ireland’s Trinity College in Dublin agreed to divest from Israel after a week-long encampment.

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