Gazans thank American university protesters as Israel calls for students’ expulsion

cnn
—

Gatherings of people across northern and central Gaza on Wednesday expressed gratitude to students on American college campuses who have been protesting the war in Gaza.

In Deir al-Balah, in front of Al Aqsa Martyrs Hospital, doctors, nurses and medical staff held signs with messages including “United against genocide,” “The killing of children must end,” and “Keep fighting for justice.” ”. ”

Dr. Saad Abu Sharban told CNN he was “over the moon” at the images of protesters in other countries, because it meant “that there are human beings all over the world who know what is happening here in the Gaza Strip right now.” moment”.

Palestinians in Gaza have been showing their support for American protesters for several days. On Wednesday, in several refugee camps in the Palestinian enclave, children could also be seen holding signs and banners with the names of different American universities where pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been held, saying “thank you for your solidarity!” .

Nadia Al-Dibs, a mother whose children held signs behind her in Deir al-Balah, told CNN that she was grateful to the “brave students” at American universities for their solidarity with Gaza and for calling for a ceasefire.

“The Arab populations have not cared about us, while the students of American universities have felt with us, they have felt the blood that is spilled from us, our buildings that are hit and our children whose lives are destroyed… a thousand thanks to them,” he said. saying.

The public recognition of the people of Gaza comes amid growing controversy in the United States over demonstrations at universities, which have spread across the country in recent weeks amid rising tensions over Israel’s war against Hamas. , launched after the terrorist group’s attack on October 7 that left more than 1,200 dead. dead.

The protests in the United States are broadly aimed at demanding an end to Israel’s devastating attack on the Palestinian enclave, which has killed more than 34,000 people, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry, and is approaching its eighth month.

But critics say some protests have crossed the line into anti-Semitism. Israel has claimed that the protests are being manipulated by “external agitators.”

Israel’s ambassador to the UN, Gilad Erdan, denounced the university protests in a speech to the General Assembly in New York on Wednesday.

Erdan accused the demonstrations of being composed of “anti-Semitic protesters affiliated with outside agitators.” He said students should face expulsion, while professors and university presidents should face “swift and severe action.”

The speech in the General Assembly followed a Security Council vote last month on a resolution that would have recognized a Palestinian state. That vote was vetoed by the United States.

Erdan lashed out at his UN colleagues, accusing the General Assembly of spreading anti-Israel rhetoric that he said had helped galvanize protesters. He shouted “shame” towards the countries sitting in the room.

Several universities have recently hardened their stance by calling on authorities to clear their campuses, a crackdown hailed by former US President Donald Trump as “a beautiful thing to watch” at Columbia University in New York.

Meanwhile, Shiraz University in Iran’s Fars province has offered scholarships to students from universities in the United States and Europe who are expelled by the protests.

Additional reporting by Artemis Moshtaghian and Richard Roth