SAR’s Academic Freedom Monitoring Project investigates and reports attacks on higher education with the aim of raising awareness, generating advocacy, and increasing protection for scholars, students, and academic communities. Starting July 1, 2026, SAR no longer publishes reports for the incidents that it records. SAR continues to monitor and record incidents that will be used in the annual Free to Think report. This page provides a record of incidents reported up to that date. Learn more about the Academic Freedom Monitoring Project.

Date of Incident: February 12, 2025

Attack Types: Killings, Violence, Disappearances

Institution(s):University of Lille

Region & Country:Europe | France

New or Ongoing:New Incident

On February 12, 2025, French police used tear gas to disperse around 60 students protesting at the University of Lille’s Pont-de-Bois campus against governmental budget cuts to public universities.

Approximately half an hour after the protest began, police fired teargas in an attempt to disperse the students. According to a police statement, they did so after receiving reports that students had stolen equipment from a nearby construction site on the campus. Students remained despite the teargas, and, around 7am, some students entered a lecture hall, using megaphones to disrupt classes. Shortly thereafter, police again used teargas to disperse the students who remained outside.

University administrators announced that the university would close early to ensure campus safety.

Scholars at Risk is concerned about the use of force against student protesters by police. While state authorities have an obligation to take all reasonable measures to ensure the safety of students and university personnel and should endeavor to prevent disruptions that inappropriately inhibit the functioning of or access to higher education, they must do so consistent with their responsibility to ensure academic freedom and free expression on campus. The punishment of nonviolent student expression undermines academic freedom and democratic society generally.

Sources:
*SAR identified this incident in data made publicly available by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED)
https://etudiant.lefigaro.fr/article/etudes/universite-de-lille-la-police-deloge-une-cinquantaine-d-etudiants-qui-tentaient-de-bloquer-un-campus-20250212/
https://www.bfmtv.com/grand-lille/nord-la-police-deloge-des-etudiants-qui-tentaient-de-bloquer-un-campus-a-villeneuve-d-ascq_AD-202502120554.html
https://france3-regions.francetvinfo.fr/hauts-de-france/nord-0/villeneuve-ascq/mobilises-contre-le-budget-des-etudiants-gazes-lors-d-un-blocage-a-l-universite-de-lille-3106681.html
https://www.francebleu.fr/infos/education/apres-une-tentative-de-blocage-l-universite-de-lille-decide-de-fermer-plus-tot-le-campus-pont-de-bois-5198952