University of Vienna Blockaded for Palestine

On October 8, a blockade took place at the University of Vienna, as reported by Rote Fahne Austria. The goal was to show solidarity with Palestine and demand an end to the collaboration with Israeli universities, particularly the University of Hebron, which trains soldiers and is involved in war crimes and genocide.

The protest was attended by numerous students. One student said: “When I was sitting in the lecture hall this morning, people came in and said: ‘the university entrance is now blocked’. The whole auditorium applauded. I knew I had to join in!”

100 police officers surrounded the activists and cleared the blockade, arresting 27 people and issuing 73 fines. Despite the magnitude of the protest, the mainstream media did not give it much attention and downplayed the size and demands of the protest.

The central demand of the students was an immediate end to the collaboration with the University of Hebron and other Israeli universities. In a leaflet by the Palestine Committee Vienna, it is stated that academic boycott is not just a moral statement, but also provides material support, and adds: “The close institutional connection between the University of Vienna and the University of Hebron is not an accident at all. It is part of Austria’s imperialist policy in the Middle East.”

The university administration did not comment on the protest and let the police respond instead, showing that the institutions of the bourgeois state apparatus will not change their course through conversations or surveys.

“This successful blockade action highlights the need for struggle and independent organization of the people for their interests and concerns,” Rote Fahne Austria adds.