AMSTERDAM: Student protests to demand that universities sever ties with Israel over the Gaza war spread in Europe on Tuesday, sparking clashes and arrests as fresh protests broke out in the Netherlands, Germany, France, Switzerland and Austria.
Students at various European universities, inspired by ongoing demonstrations at US campuses, have been occupying halls and facilities, demanding an end to partnerships with Israeli institutions because of Israel’s punishing assault on Gaza.
Several hundred protesters resumed a demonstration on Tuesday evening around the University of Amsterdam campus, where police the previous night were filmed baton-charging them and smashing up their tents after they refused to leave the campus.
As protests resumed on Tuesday night, demonstrators erected barriers to access routes watched over by a heavy police deployment.
Police said in a statement that a total of 169 people had been arrested when officers broke up Monday night’s protests.
All had been released apart from two who remain in custody on suspicion of public disorder offenses.
Violence had briefly erupted on Monday evening when a small group of counter-protesters wielding flares stormed the main protest.
Around 50 demonstrators were also protesting on Tuesday outside the library in Utrecht University and a few dozen at the Technical University of Delft, according to local news agency ANP.
In the eastern German city of Leipzig, the university said in a statement that 50 to 60 people occupied a lecture hall on Tuesday afternoon, waving banners that read: “University occupation against genocide.”
Protesters barricaded the lecture hall doors from the inside and erected tents in the courtyard, according to the university.
The university called in the police in the afternoon, and filed a criminal complaint.
A pro-Israeli counter-protest also took place in the area, involving about 40 people, police said.
Criminal proceedings have been initiated against 13 people who were in the lecture hall on suspicion of trespassing. No arrests have been made so far.
Earlier, at Berlin’s Free University, police cleared a demonstration after up to 80 people erected a protest camp in a courtyard of the campus.
The protesters, some of whom wore the keffiyeh scarf that has long been a symbol of the Palestinian cause, sat in front of tents and waved banners.
They later tried to enter rooms and lecture halls and occupy them, according to the university, which said it then called in the police to clear the protest.
The university said property was damaged while classes in some buildings were suspended for the day.
Berlin police said they made some arrests for incitement to hatred and trespassing.
In Paris, police on Tuesday twice intervened at Paris’s prestigious Sciences Po university to disperse about 20 students who had barricaded themselves in the university’s main hall.
Police moved in to allow other students to take their exams and made two arrests, according to Paris prosecutors. The university said the exams were able to proceed without incident.
Police have intervened several times over the past week at Sciences Po, where protesters are demanding the university reveal its partnerships with Israeli institutions. Some 13 students are on a hunger strike, according to the university.
At the nearby Sorbonne university building, police moved on Tuesday evening to eject about a hundred students who had occupied an amphitheater for two hours to protest about Gaza, police sources said.
In Switzerland, protests on Tuesday spread to three universities in Lausanne Geneva and Zurich.
The University of Lausanne said in a statement that it “considers that there is no reason to cease these relations” with Israeli universities as protesters demand.
In Austria, dozens of protesters have been camped on the campus of Vienna University, putting up tents and stringing up banners since late on Thursday.
The war in the Gaza Strip was sparked by an unprecedented October 7 attack on Israel by the Palestinian group Hamas, which resulted in the deaths of more than 1,170 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.
Vowing to destroy Hamas, Israel launched a retaliatory offensive that has killed at least 34,789 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.
Europe student Gaza protests spread, sparking clashes, arrests
https://arab.news/mhasn
Europe student Gaza protests spread, sparking clashes, arrests
Saudi aid agency helps crisis-hit people worldwide
- The agency distributed 500 food baskets to families returning from displacement in Sudan’s Al-Jazirah state
- In Pakistan, the agency distributed 2,167 food baskets in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, and Bhimber in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as in Rajanpur in the Punjab province
RIYADH: Saudi aid agency KSrelief continues to make a significant global impact by providing critical assistance to some of the world’s most vulnerable communities.
The agency distributed 500 food baskets to families returning from displacement in Sudan’s Al-Jazirah state, benefiting 3,999 people, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday.
In Afghanistan, KSrelief distributed 100 food baskets at the Omari camp near the Torkham border crossing to Afghan citizens returning from Pakistan.
In Lebanon, 569 food baskets were distributed to Syrian refugees and vulnerable host families in the Koura district of North Lebanon, benefiting 2,845 people.
In Pakistan, the agency distributed 2,167 food baskets in Muzaffarabad, Kotli, and Bhimber in Jammu and Kashmir, as well as in Rajanpur in the Punjab province, reaching 18,210 people in flood-affected areas.
Since its launch in May 2015, KSrelief has implemented 3,588 projects worth more than $8.1 billion across 108 countries, in partnership with more than 321 organizations.
Pope Leo XIV urges immediate end to ‘barbarity’ of Gaza war
- Pontiff: ‘I once again ask for an immediate end to the barbarity of the war and for a peaceful resolution to the conflict’
CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy: Pope Leo XIV slammed the “barbarity” of the war in Gaza on Sunday and urged against the “indiscriminate use of force,” just days after a deadly strike by Israel’s military on a Catholic church.
“I once again ask for an immediate end to the barbarity of the war and for a peaceful resolution to the conflict,” Leo said at the end of the Angelus prayer, after three people were killed on Thursday at the territory’s only Catholic church.
Oman’s telecom sector powers ahead with surge in IoT, mobile connections
- Momentum backed by substantial public investment
- Government aims to digitize approximately 80% of services by 2025
JEDDAH: Oman’s telecom sector grew 15.2 percent by May, with mobile subscriptions reaching 8.13 million and Internet of Things connections rising to 1.55 million amid digital expansion and smart tech adoption, official data showed.
IoT subscriptions surged by 118.7 percent, highlighting the growing demand for smart connectivity across sectors such as logistics, utilities, and manufacturing, the National Center for Statistics and Information said.
Oman’s rapidly expanding digital infrastructure is central to Vision 2040, which focuses on innovation, economic diversification, and improved public services. Meanwhile, growth in fiber optic and fixed 5G subscriptions highlights the shift toward advanced, high-speed connectivity.
According to Mordor Intelligence, a global market research and consulting firm, this momentum is backed by substantial public investment.
In 2022, the government announced a $441.5 million digital transformation initiative to modernize the public sector and deliver seamless smart services to citizens and businesses.
“This commitment is further reinforced by the national Digital Economy Program’s ambitious targets under Oman Vision 2040, which projects the digital economy’s contribution to gross domestic product to rise from 3 percent in 2025 to 5 percent in 2030, ultimately reaching 10 percent by 2040,” Mordor said in a report on the Gulf state’s information and communication technology market.
The research firm added that the government’s digitalization drive includes a goal of digitizing approximately 80 percent of services by 2025, laying a robust foundation for long-term technological progress across sectors.
Further data from NCSI, also published by the Oman News Agency, showed postpaid mobile subscriptions climbed by 5.6 percent to over 1.23 million by the end of May, compared to the same period last year. Prepaid mobile subscriptions also rose, up 3.1 percent to more than 5.33 million.
Mobile broadband Internet subscriptions reached 5.41 million, while fixed broadband subscriptions increased by 2.6 percent year-on-year to 588,015.
Within the fixed Internet segment, fiber optic services grew by 11.4 percent to 339,279 subscriptions.
Fixed 5G connections rose by 2.1 percent to 215,850. However, legacy technologies are on the decline, with fixed 4G subscriptions falling by 38.1 percent to 19,654, digital user lines dropping by 50.8 percent to 11,806, and satellite Internet accounts shrinking by 2.1 percent to 653.
Other Internet services, such as powerline, Ethernet, and leased lines, also contracted by 12 percent, totaling only 773 subscriptions by the end of the fifth month.
The sultanate’s digital transformation efforts are further underscored by the Government Digital Transformation Program, known as Tahawul, which reached 73 percent overall performance by November, up from 53 percent the previous year.
The government has streamlined and digitalized thousands of public services, with four key entities, including the Telecommunications Regulatory Authority, achieving advanced digital excellence.
The progress aligns with Oman Vision 2040’s priorities and is supported by major digital infrastructure projects, such as the upcoming unified e-government portal and the National Digital Integration Platform, which has processed over 1.4 billion data transactions.
The surge in digital government transactions, reaching nearly 27 million in 2024, reflects the growing public adoption of smart services. By 2025, 80 percent of essential government services are expected to be fully online.
Six dead, 20 injured as passenger bus overturns in southern Pakistan
- Passenger bus was heading from Karachi toward Keenjhar Lake in Thatta district, says rescue service
- One person dead, several injured as another bus overturns in Khairpur district, media reports say
KARACHI: Six people were killed while 20 others were injured when a passenger bus overturned in the southern district of Thatta on Sunday, an emergency rescue service said.
The bus was heading from Pakistan’s southern port city of Karachi toward Keenjhar Lake in Sindh’s Thatta district when the accident occurred. Six people were killed and 20 injured in the accident, Rescue 1122 Sindh service said in a statement.
“The deceased and injured have been shifted to the Civil Hospital Thatta,” the statement said.
In a separate incident, one person died while several others were injured after a passenger bus reportedly overturned on the Gambat National Highway in Sindh’s Khairpur district.
Sindh Home Minister Zia Ul Hassan Lanjar expressed sorrow over the loss of lives in both accidents, a statement from his office said.
“Drivers must not let go of caution while driving,” Lanjar said. “Even a minor mistake can lead to the loss of valuable human lives.”
Road accidents are common in Pakistan, where several roads are in dilapidated condition and drivers often avoid following traffic regulations.
Hong Kong hit by strong winds, heavy rain as Typhoon Wipha skirts past
- Neighboring casino hub Macau issued its own top-level typhoon warning shortly after noon
- More than 250 people sought refuge at government-run temporary shelters
HONG KONG: Hong Kong was battered by strong winds and heavy rain on Sunday as Typhoon Wipha skirted along China’s southern coast, with fallen trees and collapsed scaffolding spotted across the city.
Wipha was located around 140 kilometers (87 miles) to Hong Kong’s southwest as of 5 p.m. (0900 GMT), according to the city’s weather observatory.
Hong Kong’s highest tropical cyclone warning, T10, was in effect for around seven hours but was downgraded to the third-highest T8 warning at 4:10 p.m. as Wipha departed the city.
“Gale to storm force southeasterly winds are still affecting parts of the territory occasionally,” the observatory said.
“The intense rainbands of Wipha are persistently affecting the vicinity of Pearl River Estuary.”
Neighboring casino hub Macau issued its own top-level typhoon warning shortly after noon, with authorities suspending all public transportation services.
China’s Hainan and Guangdong provinces were earlier put on high alert, according to state news agency Xinhua.
In Hong Kong, more than 250 people sought refuge at government-run temporary shelters.
Officials said they received more than 450 reports of fallen trees and a handful of flooding reports, including at a main thoroughfare in the Wong Tai Sin district.
A representative from Hong Kong’s Airport Authority earlier said that around 500 flights have been canceled due to the weather, while around 400 flights were scheduled to take off or land later in the day.
Authorities suspended Sunday’s classes at all day schools and daycare centers.
Local trains offered limited services while operations in open sections were suspended.
Wipha also brought heavy rains and flooding to the Philippines, where two people have been reported missing, according to the country’s National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.
Hong Kong last hoisted the T10 warning signal for Super Typhoon Saola in 2023.
