On April 8, 2025, Israeli forces forcibly entered the campus of Al Quds University in East Jerusalem. They shot tear gas and stun grenades, injuring 23 students.
The raid happened before dawn, prior to an on-campus demonstration in solidarity with Palestinians in the Gaza Strip. Videos and photos from the scene show Israeli police using tear gas to disperse protesters. Twenty-two students were injured by tear gas inhalation; one student was treated for burns outside of the hospital.
Scholars at Risk is concerned by state security forces using tear gas to restrict nonviolent, on-campus student expression — conduct that is protected by international human rights instruments including the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which Israel is a party. State security forces have an obligation to refrain from using force to restrict or retaliate against nonviolent student expression. The use of tear gas to restrict nonviolent campus 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://www.birzeit.edu/en/news/birzeit-university-denounces-occupations-raid-al-quds-university
https://english.wafa.ps/Pages/Details/156233
https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/hebrew-u-student-protest-calls-for-end-of-war-in-gaza-stop-the-genocide/
https://english.palinfo.com/news/2025/04/08/336974/