Storm in Belgium: Government refuses to accept students from Gaza
A group of Palestinian researchers who have already received study offers in the European country will not be able to begin their studies. The reason is the blocking of their exit from the Gaza Strip due to disagreements within the nationalist coalition regarding immigration policy.
A number of Palestinian students and researchers who won study scholarships in Belgium will not be able to start the next semester. The reason: The Belgian government blocked their exit from Gaza due to disagreements within the coalition regarding immigration policy. "There is no consensus on this within the government," stated a spokesperson for the Belgian Minister of Migration. Ten universities in Belgium signed a letter to the Prime Minister calling for assistance in the safe exit of the researchers from the Strip. The Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories stated that the state assists and encourages the evacuation of students and researchers from the Gaza Strip at the request of third countries.
A group of Palestinian students and researchers, who won study scholarships at leading universities in Belgium, will likely not be able to start their studies in the upcoming semester. Their exit from the Gaza Strip was blocked due to disagreements within the coalition government of Prime Minister Bart De Wever. Although some of the students received their study offers as early as June, the government in Brussels has yet to approve their evacuation from the Strip.
The students cannot leave Gaza freely due to the war, but third countries can request their evacuation from Israel for study purposes. Countries like Italy and the UK have already established mechanisms to assist Palestinian students, but in Belgium, the issue has encountered political difficulties. The situation highlights the limits of the Belgian position on the Palestinian issue, which clashes with the immigration policy of the ruling nationalist party.
"Evacuations are under the authority of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but it is true that there is currently no consensus on this within the government," said a spokesperson for the Minister of Migration, Anne-leen Van Bossuyt, who belongs to De Wever's party, the N-VA. The Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs noted that it is examining what can be done to assist the students, but emphasized that any decision on evacuation is the responsibility of the government as a whole.
What are the universities saying?
Ann Wuyts, Vice-Rector at the Free University of Brussels, said that universities feel the reluctance of some parties regarding immigration. Wuyts is one of ten university heads who signed a letter to Prime Minister De Wever calling on him to help organize a safe exit from the Strip for the Palestinian researchers. "Some parties in the coalition are very reluctant when it comes to immigration," said Wuyts. "We feel this clearly when it concerns our international students."
Among the scholarship recipients are researchers in fields needed for the reconstruction of the Strip, such as doctors, virologists, and computer scientists. One of them is Ahmad Al-Salibi, who received an offer for a post-doctoral research project, studying the use of artificial intelligence for the efficient evacuation of ambulances. Zuhair Dardona is another researcher, who plans to study the impact of the war and the destruction of infrastructure on the spread of infectious diseases.
Like them is Salwa Abu Al-Haj, who won a scholarship for a master's degree in communications, and said she had to walk for an hour to find internet to submit her application. "Whoever prevents the evacuation of students is destroying dreams," said Abu Al-Haj. "They are preventing people with ambition and a genuine desire to contribute and rebuild their country from pursuing their future."
