University presses charges over anti-Israel graffiti on library
This week, for the third time in a short period, the University Library (UB) was defaced with anti-Israel slogans; the cleaning costs are beginning to stack up. The University has pressed charges.
Monday night, graffiti-spraying activists struck again on the Radboud University campus. Earlier, the University library was also covered with phrases such as Stop genocide, Free Palestine, Boycott Israel.
Open Day
As far as we know, this is the third time in recent memory that graffiti had to be removed; last Saturday morning was another instance. Those phrases were removed before the arrival of the first visitors of the Open Day; the Palestinian flags hoisted on the flagpoles were also taken down.
A University spokesperson has stated that destruction and vandalism on campus, such as spraying graffiti, will not be tolerated. As such, the University has pressed charges. Meanwhile, cleaning costs are mounting; removing graffiti costs roughly one thousand euros each time.
Cooperation
Last week, it was announced that the University will not be severing ties with Israeli universities. The Scholars for Palestine group urged the University to do so, in light of the violence in Gaza. According to the Board, cooperative ties provide the opportunity to maintain an ‘open line’ of communication. The University also wants to investigate whether they can provide more aid to Palestinian students and scientists.
Translated by Jasper Pesch