Protest at the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto will last until Monday

The students camped near the computer science department of the Faculty of Sciences of the University of Porto (FCUP) will remain there at least until Monday, the organization’s Luse Carolina Moreira said this Sunday.

“Unless the college management decides to listen to us and change their position, we will remain here day and night at least until tomorrow. [segunda-feira]“, said Carolina Moreira, according to whom communication with FCUP “was limited to daily dialogue with security guards at the sites.”

“They are the ones who tell us whether we can use the bathrooms, they are the ones who tell us what management has decided about access to the building, which was not the same every day. We have no contact with the authorities. management,” said the student, who, along with dozens of other colleagues, spent four days camping near the computer science department.

This protest began a week ago, when about fifty students complained to the rector of UP about the breakdown in relations between the academy and the state of Israel.

On Wednesday, students gathered in the Faculty of Fine Arts and decided to continue their protest in the Faculty of Science, where they pitched camp tents to shelter for the night, surrounded by Palestinian flags, candles and banners with phrases such as: “Proletarian solidarity for a free Palestine,” “Israel is not a democracy, Israel is a terrorist country” and “The revolution begins here.”

This Sunday, Carolina Moreira told the Lusa agency that “by not actively listening [por parte de responsáveis da FCUP] they will not demobilize” and confirmed the reason for this protest, which, according to the same source, attracted “between 80 and 100 people” during the day and “never less than 25” at night.

“Our goal is debate and discussion focused on the liberation of Palestine, as well as severing ties with the State of Israel. Both the UP rectorate and the Faculty of Science know this, they know what we demand,” said Carolina Moreira.

This Sunday, after the student assembly, which was repeated throughout the day to identify new initiatives, it was decided to open the assembly to civil society and prepare a cultural event.

“The meeting will open on Wednesday and on Friday we will promote the cultural programme. Everything will be discussed throughout the week. More and more students and others showed solidarity with this protest, which was the reason we were brought here.” “, he concluded.

The ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip was sparked by an attack on Israeli soil by the Islamist group Hamas on October 7, 2023, which killed approximately 1,200 people and captured two hundred hostages, according to Israeli authorities.

In response, Israel launched a large-scale military offensive in the Gaza Strip, which has already killed more than 35,000 people, mostly civilians, according to local Hamas-controlled authorities, leaving the enclave in a severe humanitarian crisis.