Irish University Meets Demands, Praises Protesters

In contrast to events at many campuses on the other side of the Atlantic, students at Ireland's oldest university agreed to take down an anti-Gaza war encampment after negotiations that Trinity College Dublin officials described as "very productive and very fruitful." After five days of peaceful protest, students dismantled the encampment at the central Dublin campus Wednesday night, the New York Times reports.

• Demands met. The Irish Times reports that the university has agreed to divest from three Israeli companies with links to illegal West Bank settlements and it says it will "endeavour to divest from investments in other Israeli companies." Trinity also plans to provide tuition and accommodation for eight scholars from Gaza. Professor Eoin O'Sullivan, the university's lead negotiator, said Trinity is "committed to further constructive engagement on the issues raised. We thank the students for their engagement."

• Solidarity with students. "We fully understand the driving force behind the encampment on our campus, and we are in solidarity with the students in our horror of what is happening in Gaza," the university said in a statement. "We abhor and condemn all violence and war, including the atrocities of October 7th, the taking of hostages and the continuing ferocious and disproportionate onslaught in Gaza."
• Trinity "refused to follow US example." "The college was determined that it would be an example going forward," incoming student union president Jenny Maguire said Wednesday, per the New York Times. "It refused to follow the US example of bringing police in and made it clear that it would not pursue anything like that here."
• The Book of Kells. Protesters had blocked access to an exhibit that included the 1,200-year-old Book of Kells manuscript, the BBC reports. The exhibition attracts more than 500,000 tourists a year and is a major source of university income.
• Cause has strong support in Ireland. The New York Times notes that there has long been strong support for the Palestinian cause in Ireland, where many "compare Israel's military occupation of Palestinian territories to centuries of British colonialism in their own country."

(More 2024 campus protests stories.)