Statement by the Board of Uppsala University on the situation in Gaza

Here is the letter to the Swedish Government in full:

To the Government of Sweden

Statement by the Board of Uppsala University on the situation in Gaza.

For almost three months, Israel has blocked the entry of food, medicine, fuel and other critical supplies, as well as life-saving assistance to Gaza. At the same time, civilians including children and women are under attack. The attacks are taking place in residential buildings, in tent camps, in shelters, in hospitals, and in areas where the Israeli army has urged people to seek refuge. Israel is also attacking vital infrastructure, hindering everything from access to water, delivery of humanitarian aid and rescue operations. Added to this now are statements about displacing the civilian population. Neither under international law nor common humanity can this be justified by Hamas’s abominable acts of violence on 7 October. What is happening in Gaza is a humanitarian disaster and involves immense human suffering. This has to stop.

Researchers, teachers and students at Uppsala University have long called for a boycott of collaborations with Israeli universities. The University has chosen not to accede to the boycott demands. The reason for this is that universities have a key role in a democratic state governed by law. However, Uppsala University calls on Israeli universities to take their academic and human responsibility, which requires international support, not isolation.

The business of universities is to teach, research, transmit knowledge and promote critical thinking. Universities must offer a safe environment for discussion and dialogue. In this context, universities have a responsibility to ensure that no one is subjected to discrimination or threats.

It is not the task of a university to take a centralised position on foreign policy issues. However, when, as is now the case, serious and large-scale war crimes are deliberately committed by a government and when there is an evident risk of genocide, there are strong reasons for Uppsala University to take an explicit stand and condemn such acts. This is particularly true in the case of a country with which Sweden and the EU have close economic and political cooperation, including in research and education, which requires the parties to respect human rights and democratic principles.

As an occupying power, Israel has a special responsibility under international law to protect the human rights of Palestinians and to protect the civilian population. However, under the Genocide Convention, other states also have a responsibility to seek to prevent genocide. This includes cooperating with other states and international organisations and using diplomatic, economic or military means (in cooperation with the UN) to prevent genocide wherever it occurs.

Sweden has so far not lived up to these obligations under international law. On the contrary, Sweden has both stopped all funding of UNRWA and explicitly refrained from condemning Israel’s actions. This is despite the issuance by the ICC of a warrant for Netanyahu’s arrest, the ICJ’s finding that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories is illegal and involves systematic human rights violations, as well as very strong appeals from the UN and several human rights organisations. Sweden, which has long been a prominent and important role model in the protection of human rights and prosecution of international law violations, has abandoned its established position.

We therefore call on the Swedish government to explicitly condemn Israel’s actions, to immediately resume its funding of UNRWA, and to actively work within the EU to take all measures at its disposal (including imposing trade sanctions on Israel) to prevent a genocide.

Uppsala, 19 May 2025

Anne Ramberg
Chair

Anders Hagfeldt
Vice-Chancellor