Gaza war protest at French univ ends

Student protesters in France’s Institute of Political Studies or Sciences Po university have agreed to end days of sit-ins and blockades of entrances there after administrators agreed to an “internal debate” about the institution’s ties to Israel.

University authorities also agreed to drop all disciplinary proceedings against demonstrators, said a note sent to students and faculty by Jean Basseres, Sciences Po’s administrator.

The pro-Palestine student protesters also called off their action after a scuffle with pro-Israel students on Friday.

By Friday night, the Paris protests had eased and the street outside was calm, according to an Agence France-Presse reporter on the scene.

Protest leaders, who had demanded a study of Science Po’s partnerships with universities or institutions that support the Israeli government, said they were happy with the promise of an internal debate.

Science Po has a joint degree program with New York’s Columbia University and several French students are taking part in protests at one of the US institutions most radicalized by protests.