Flemish universities in Belgium have officially severed their academic cooperation with Israeli universities in protest against Israel’s violations of international humanitarian law and its war crimes.
In a statement released on Friday, 31 January, the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR) announced that no new projects would be established with Israeli partners. The council stressed that the academic community has a special responsibility in rebuilding educational and research institutions in Gaza.
Furthermore, the VLIR reiterated its call on the European Commission to issue guidelines allowing universities participating in EU-funded research consortia to assess whether Israeli universities and research institutions involved in these projects are complicit in human rights violations.
This decision follows an open letter dated 14 January, in which thousands of students, professors, researchers, and other academic staff urged Belgian universities to cut all ties with Israeli institutions due to Israel’s ongoing attacks on Gaza and the West Bank.
Since launching its devastating war on Gaza on 7 October 2023, Israel—backed by the United States—has killed more than 47,460 Palestinians, the majority of whom are women and children, and wounded over 111,000 others. The war has also caused mass destruction, a deadly famine, and the disappearance of over 11,000 people.
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza. Israel is also facing genocide charges before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) for its war against the besieged Palestinian territory.
