Spain: Universities will break all agreements with Israeli schools if counteroffensives in Gaza do not stop

Antisemitic protests on college campuses are spreading around the world. Not only among students, but also among university leaders. The latest case happened in Spain, where the Conference of Rectors of Spanish Universities (CRUE) has reported that will cancel all agreements that exist with Israeli universities and research centers in the event that they do not express their opposition to the military counteroffensives of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in Gaza.

This ultimatum from CRUE (which brings together 50 public and 27 private universities in Spain) comes from the "very serious events" that are occurring within the strip, as explained by its board in statements reported by the Spanish newspaper El Mundo. What's more, it also requires "the immediate and definitive cessation" of any military action committed by Israeli soldiers, in addition to asking Hamas to stop its terrorist attacks and release the hostages.

Their requests do not end there. CRUE also demands that Israel "respect international law and allow the entry into Gaza of all humanitarian aid that can be provided to cover the emergency of its civilian population and that the corresponding measures be articulated by international bodies to undertake the reconstruction and recovery of the Palestinian territory as soon as possible."

As has happened in universities in the United States and other countries like France and the United Kingdom, in Spain, thousands of young people have concentrated on university campuses in the country's major cities like Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia to protest against Israel's strategy of self-defense. Like the rest of the nations, they set up camps on campuses.

The Spanish socialist government among those who will recognize the Palestinian state

In the coming days, several leaders of the European Union (E.U.), Spain among them, will recognize Palestine as a state. It is speculated that the specific date will be May 21, according to RTE, a public media outlet in Ireland, another of the nations involved in this joint decision. Irish Prime Minister Simon Harris assured that both his government and Spain's have "a clear plan" to recognize the Palestinian state after speaking with his Spanish counterpart, Pedro Sánchez. Other administrations such as Slovenia have already begun the process to proclaim the State of Palestine, according to Reuters.

Without leaving Spain, several members of Sánchez's government have already spoken out about defining Palestine as an independent state. Among them is Minister of Foreign Affairs José Manuel Albares and Minister of Health Mónica García, although the latter is not concerned with deciding on this issue because it is outside of her powers.

Also joining this wave of support is controversial Spanish Minister of Youth Sira Rego, who just over a month after Hamas attacked Israel, defended the actions of the terrorist group and said that "Palestine has the right to resist after decades of occupation, apartheid and exile."