Tuesday, 02 January 2024 12:17 GMT

Belgian University Calls for Gaza Students to Enter Country


(MENAFN) The rector of KU Leuven University has urged the Belgian government to permit 13 Palestinian students from Gaza to enter Belgium so they can begin their university studies.

Severine Vermeire said she was “angry and indignant” about the uncertainty facing the students, with three of them scheduled to start their programs at KU Leuven this week.

“There is only one right decision: those 13 students must be able to come to Belgium,” she said.

Vermeire said the university views the students as victims of what she called “political games” and noted that university leaders in Belgium have been pressing the federal government to resolve the issue for several months.

“We have written letters to (Asylum and Migration) Minister Anneleen Van Bossuyt, to (Foreign) Minister Maxime Prevot, and to the Prime Minister (Bart De Wever),” she said.

The rector said university officials are continuing their efforts to persuade the government to make a decision on the students' entry.

“We continue to exert pressure and are doing so together, in the hope that the federal government will still make a decision,” Vermeire added.

According to reports, Prevot has supported efforts to evacuate the students from Gaza, but his position has reportedly encountered resistance from De Wever's Flemish conservative party.

Vermeire emphasized that the students are seeking permission to enter Belgium for the purpose of pursuing higher education and are not attempting to enter the country through irregular migration routes.

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