UPDATE – On Wednesday morning, a masked activist from the pro-Palestine action group Nijmegen Encampment climbed one of the towers of the former boiler house at Radboudumc in Nijmegen. Shortly after noon, he was brought down by police.

A special police unit trained in climbing safely brought the man down. The 23-year-old from Nijmegen was arrested for being on restricted property, according to a police spokesperson.

Since shortly after 06:00, the man had been hanging in a kind of sleeping bag and had a backpack with him. He remained still, occasionally gave a thumbs-up to emergency responders, and showed no intention of coming down. The towers of the boiler house, which serve as chimneys, are each about 38 meters high.

Emergency services responded to the scene at Zernikeplaats in Nijmegen, opposite the HAN University of Applied Sciences, to get the man down. After some consultation with him, police and firefighters scaled back their efforts, likely hoping he would come down on his own.

Banner

The man’s face was almost completely covered. He spoke English and said he had a banner with him, though he wasn’t able to hoist it up. Unlike previous actions by Nijmegen Encampment — which mostly involved large groups and took place on the grounds of Radboud University — there were no Palestinian flags or other visual elements present.

‘Free Palestine, brother’ and ‘Radboud, cut the ties,’ the man shouted — referring to Radboud University’s ties with Israeli universities, collaborations which, according to activists and an advisory committee, should be severed. ‘Radboudumc, cut the ties,’ he also shouted.

‘Radboud University and Radboudumc are complicit in the genocide in Gaza,’ the man says. He claimed the hospital also has a partnership with Israel, though he said he did not know the exact nature of that collaboration.

Police, Firefighters, Security

A spokesperson for Nijmegen Encampment confirmed that the man was acting on behalf of the group and stated via email that the action is also a call for democratising the university: ‘The university is currently a toxic and undemocratic place. It’s time for students and staff to have a say in the ethical boundaries of academic collaborations.’

Ultimately, the police brought the man down shortly after 12:00, which was also confirmed by a Nijmegen Encampment spokesperson.

This article previously appeared in De Gelderlander.