Students at Birzeit University face a renewed escalation of arbitrary arrests as they prepare to return to campus next month. Last week, on Tuesday 29 August 2023, Israeli forces detained the Secretary of Birzeit Student Union, Abdul-Ghani Fares following a raid on his home in Silwad by Israeli military forces.
Fourteen Birzeit university students have been arrested by Israeli military authorities since the start of July 2023. The Right to Education Campaign and Birzeit students have condemned the targeting of their colleagues and vowed to continue pursue their education despite ongoing threats of arbitrary detention and harassment by Israeli forces.
These arrests reflect the broader trend of escalating violence that Palestinians in the West Bank have been subjected to this year. According to the most recent data, 200 Palestinians were arrested in the West Bank over the past week. Over 5,100 Palestinians are currently detained in Israeli prisons with at least 1,200 of them held under administrative detention, detained indefinitely and denied their right to a fair trial. At this critical time, it is more crucial than ever that we continue standing in solidarity with Palestinian students and academics, to ensure that we support their fight to access education.