Protesters set up encampment at University of Guelph
CBC News | Posted: May 21, 2024 7:10 PM | Last Updated: May 22
Group called UoGForPalestine says encampment is 'in solidarity with Gaza'
There is an unsanctioned encampment on the University of Guelph campus as of Tuesday, which the school says appears to be similar to others set up on university and college campuses in Canada and the U.S.
It comes a week after a similar encampment was set up at the University of Waterloo.
A group called UOGForPalestine organized the approximately 20 tents in Branion Plaza, near the school's library.
According to the group's Instagram page they are protesting "in solidarity with Gaza and as a continuation of our fight for the University of Guelph to divest from genocide."
Waida Mirzada is a student at the school and the spokesperson for the group.
"These students have been mobilizing for months. We have faced so much suppression and censorship from this institution," she told CBC News.
"There is Islamophobia, transphobia, ableism. There is anti-Palestinian racism. Jewish students are harassed and doxxed. So it really is just colonial violence, and this institution is doing absolutely nothing to address it."
WATCH | Encampment set up on University of Guelph campus:
In a message on its website, the university said it's monitoring the encampment and has been in contact with the individuals involved "to remind them of campus policies."
"Encampments go against university policies and are not permitted as they entail health and safety risks for individuals in the encampment and for other members of the community," the school's statement said.
The university also said it has received a submission for divestment from the group under the school's special action policy.
"It is being reviewed in accordance with university processes and procedures. The individuals who submitted their request to the university were invited to provide additional input and speak about their submission directly to the finance committee," the university statement said.
"We appreciate your patience and understanding as we seek a peaceful resolution to the unauthorized encampment."
Similar to other protests
Similar pro-Palestinian protests and encampments have taken place at university campuses across the country, including at McGill University in Montreal, the University of Toronto, McMaster University in Hamilton and University of Windsor.
The protests began at Columbia University in New York City on April 17.
Protesters say they want to draw attention to the ongoing humanitarian situation Gaza that is a result of the Israeli military response to a deadly attack on Oct. 7 launched by Hamas and other militants.
About 1,200 people were killed on Oct. 7, including several Canadians. Since then, more than 34,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip, according to the Health Ministry there.
On Monday, the top prosecutor for International Criminal Court (ICC), Karim Khan, sought warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, accusing them of multiple offences committed since Israel declared war against Hamas in response to the Oct. 7 militant attacks.
Khan also applied for warrants for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri (also known as Mohammed Deif), the commander-in-chief of Hamas's military wing, and Ismail Haniyeh, head of the Hamas political bureau, for crimes committed in Israel and Gaza.
- Read more details about the pursuit of these arrest warrants here.