Latest news with #ErasmusPlus
Daily Mail
2 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Ireland's top university cuts all ties with Israel after major student protest
Ireland's prestigious Trinity College Dublin said on Wednesday that it would cut all links with Israel in protest at 'ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law'. The university's board informed students by email that it had accepted the recommendations of a taskforce to sever 'institutional links with the State of Israel, Israeli universities and companies headquartered in Israel'. The recommendations would be 'enacted for the duration of the ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law', said the email sent by the board's chairman Paul Farrell. The taskforce was set up after part of the university's campus in central Dublin was blockaded by students for five days last year in protest at Israel's actions in Gaza. Among the taskforce's recommendations approved by the board were pledges to divest 'from all companies headquartered in Israel' and to 'enter into no future supply contracts with Israeli firms' and 'no new commercial relationships with Israeli entities'. The university also said that it would 'enter into no further mobility agreements with Israeli universities'. Trinity has two current Erasmus+ exchange agreements with Israeli universities: Bar Ilan University, an agreement that ends in July 2026, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which ends in July 2025, the university told AFP in an email. The board also said that the university 'should not submit for approval or agree to participate in any new institutional research agreements involving Israeli participation'. It 'should seek to align itself with like-minded universities and bodies in an effort to influence EU policy concerning Israel's participation in such collaborations,' it added. Ireland has been among the most outspoken critics of Israel's response to the October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel by Hamas militants that sparked the war in Gaza. Polls since the start of the war have shown overwhelming pro-Palestinian sympathy in Ireland. In May 2024, Dublin joined several other European countries in recognising Palestine as a 'sovereign and independent state'. It then joined South Africa in bringing a case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza - charges angrily denied by Israeli leaders. In December, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar ordered the closure of the country's embassy in Dublin, blaming Ireland's 'extreme anti-Israel policies'. The University of Geneva also announced Wednesday that it has ended its partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem following student protests, saying it no longer reflected the institution's 'strategic priorities'.
Arab News
2 days ago
- General
- Arab News
Prestigious Irish university to cut links with Israel over Gaza war
DUBLIN: Ireland's prestigious Trinity College Dublin said on Wednesday that it would cut all links with Israel in protest at 'ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law.' The university's board informed students by email that it had accepted the recommendations of a taskforce to sever 'institutional links with the State of Israel, Israeli universities and companies headquartered in Israel.' The recommendations would be 'enacted for the duration of the ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law,' said the email sent by the board's chairman Paul Farrell, and seen by AFP. The taskforce was set up after part of the university's campus in central Dublin was blockaded by students for five days last year in protest at Israel's actions in Gaza. Among the taskforce's recommendations approved by the board were pledges to divest 'from all companies headquartered in Israel' and to 'enter into no future supply contracts with Israeli firms' and 'no new commercial relationships with Israeli entities.' The university also said that it would 'enter into no further mobility agreements with Israeli universities.' Trinity has two current Erasmus+ exchange agreements with Israeli universities: Bar Ilan University, an agreement that ends in July 2026, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which ends in July 2025, the university told AFP in an email. The board also said that the university 'should not submit for approval or agree to participate in any new institutional research agreements involving Israeli participation.' It 'should seek to align itself with like-minded universities and bodies in an effort to influence EU policy concerning Israel's participation in such collaborations,' it added. Ireland has been among the most outspoken critics of Israel's response to the October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel by Hamas militants that sparked the war in Gaza. Polls since the start of the war have shown overwhelming pro-Palestinian sympathy in Ireland. In May 2024, Dublin joined several other European countries in recognizing Palestine as a 'sovereign and independent state.' It then joined South Africa in bringing a case before the International Court of Justice in The Hague accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza — charges angrily denied by Israeli leaders. In December, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar ordered the closure of the country's embassy in Dublin, blaming Ireland's 'extreme anti-Israel policies.' The University of Geneva also announced Wednesday that it has ended its partnership with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem following student protests, saying it no longer reflected the institution's 'strategic priorities.'
Asharq Al-Awsat
2 days ago
- General
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Irish University to Cut Links with Israel Over Gaza War
Ireland's prestigious Trinity College Dublin said on Wednesday that it would cut all links with Israel in protest at "ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law". The university's board informed students by email on Wednesday that it had accepted the recommendations of a taskforce to sever "institutional links with the State of Israel, Israeli universities and companies headquartered in Israel". The recommendations would be "enacted for the duration of the ongoing violations of international and humanitarian law", said the email sent by the board's chairman Paul Farrell, and seen by AFP. The taskforce was set up after part of the university's campus in central Dublin was blockaded by students for five days last year in protest at Israel's actions in Gaza. Among the taskforce's recommendations approved by the board were pledges to divest "from all companies headquartered in Israel" and to "enter into no future supply contracts with Israeli firms" and "no new commercial relationships with Israeli entities". The university also said that it would "enter into no further mobility agreements with Israeli universities". Trinity has two current Erasmus+ exchange agreements with Israeli universities: Bar Ilan University, an agreement that ends in July 2026, and the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, which ends in July 2025, the university told AFP in an email. The board also said that the university "should not submit for approval or agree to participate in any new institutional research agreements involving Israeli participation". It "should seek to align itself with like-minded universities and bodies in an effort to influence EU policy concerning Israel's participation in such collaborations," it added. Ireland has been among the most outspoken critics of Israel's response to the October 7, 2023 attacks on southern Israel by Hamas that sparked the war in Gaza. Polls since the start of the war have shown overwhelming pro-Palestinian sympathy in Ireland. In May 2024, Dublin joined several other European countries in recognizing Palestine as a "sovereign and independent state". It then joined South Africa in bringing a case before the International Court of Justice in the Hague accusing Israel of committing genocide in Gaza -- charges angrily denied by Israeli leaders. In December, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar ordered the closure of the country's embassy in Dublin, blaming Ireland's "extreme anti-Israel policies".
Daily Mail
21-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Questions grow over true cost of UK-EU deal as Starmer stays silent
By Keir Starmer was last night under pressure to come clean about the bill for his controversial Brexit 'surrender'. The Prime Minister repeatedly ducked questions in Parliament about how much Britain will pay the EU for his deal amid speculation it will run to hundreds of millions of pounds a year. During clashes in the Commons, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch (pictured) said Sir Keir had not said 'a single word... about the money that we will now be sending to Brussels'. While Tory MP Dame Harriett Baldwin said it was time for the PM to set out 'how much UK taxpayers' money is he willing to hand over to the EU in order to sign up to its protectionist demands'. Sir Keir admitted that the deal will involve the UK making a 'proportionate contribution' to the EU but refused to say how much it would be. Tory grandee Sir Bernard Jenkin said the PM was 'submitting to EU regulations without any control and starting to pay money back to the European Union – he is giving up control over our laws and restoring payments to the European Union'. He predicted Labour would 'pay a bitter political price for this betrayal'. The PM, however, insisted his deal would be 'good for our country and good for the economy'. Downing Street denied the PM had signed a blank cheque to the EU but said the implementation of parts of the deal is still being negotiated. The agreement, announced on Monday, commits the UK to rejoining the EU's Erasmus+ scheme for young people. The cost of this has previously been estimated at more than £200million. But the UK must also make an 'appropriate financial contribution' to help with the EU's costs in monitoring Britain's compliance with the bloc's rules in areas like food and farming standards. Britain will also have to pay for its firms to access the EU's new £125billion defence procurement programme. But Sir Keir insisted that Britain will not be 'paying into the EU budget in the way that EU members do', with payments instead tied directly to benefits. No 10 said the financial cost of the deal would be dwarfed by the benefits, which it estimates will add £9billion to the economy by 2040. The PM was also boosted by an intervention from Morrisons' chief executive Rami Baitieh, who said the deal would 'ease a source of pressure on food prices'. In the Commons, Eurosceptic MPs condemned the deal. Mrs Badenoch said the deal was 'bad for bills; it is bad for jobs; and it is bad for borders'. She condemned the decision to extend EU fishing access to British waters for another 12 years as a 'sellout'. And she said the decision to permanently align with the EU's rules in areas like agriculture was a 'total capitulation', adding: 'The Prime Minister is going to pay the EU to abide by laws that we have no say on.' Tory MP Mark Francois said: 'The British people voted peacefully and democratically to leave the European Union, so why has the Prime Minister surrendered that right and made us a rule-taker from the EU once again?' Sir Keir described the warning as 'nonsense' and insisted that the UK 'will have a role in shaping any future rules'. He said the deal was just a 'first step', adding that Labour hoped to 'take our co-operation and co-ordination further, step by step.' But he appeared to rule out rejoining the EU's customs union, saying that would cut across other recent trade deals with India and the U.S., adding: 'I am not prepared to rip up the benefits that we have negotiated in those deals'. In Brussels, EU diplomats celebrated, with one telling the BBC: 'The deal is balanced – arguably with favourable terms for the EU – and simply shows that splendid isolation is not an option in today's climate.' The deal has provoked a furious backlash from the fishing industry, with senior figures describing it as a 'horror show'. Pictured: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer (L) and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen (R) leave after holding a press conference following the UK-EU summit at the Lancaster House in London, Britain, 19 May 2025. But Environment Secretary Steve Reed (pictured) claimed it was a 'reasonably good deal' for the sector. He said ministers had resisted pressure from Brussels to allow even more access for EU trawlers and that the deal should spell the end of the bloc's ban on British shellfish.
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Secrecy over the final cost of PM's EU surrender: Starmer ducks questions amid fears bill will hit hundreds of millions of pounds a year
Keir Starmer was last night under pressure to come clean about the bill for his controversial Brexit 'surrender'. The Prime Minister repeatedly ducked questions in Parliament about how much Britain will pay the EU for his deal amid speculation it will run to hundreds of millions of pounds a year. During clashes in the Commons, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said Sir Keir had not said 'a single word... about the money that we will now be sending to Brussels'. While Tory MP Dame Harriett Baldwin said it was time for the PM to set out 'how much UK taxpayers' money is he willing to hand over to the EU in order to sign up to its protectionist demands'. Sir Keir admitted that the deal will involve the UK making a 'proportionate contribution' to the EU but refused to say how much it would be. Tory grandee Sir Bernard Jenkin said the PM was 'submitting to EU regulations without any control and starting to pay money back to the European Union – he is giving up control over our laws and restoring payments to the European Union'. He predicted Labour would 'pay a bitter political price for this betrayal'. The PM, however, insisted his deal would be 'good for our country and good for the economy'. Downing Street denied the PM had signed a blank cheque to the EU but said the implementation of parts of the deal is still being negotiated. The agreement, announced on Monday, commits the UK to rejoining the EU's Erasmus+ scheme for young people. The cost of this has previously been estimated at more than £200million. But the UK must also make an 'appropriate financial contribution' to help with the EU's costs in monitoring Britain's compliance with the bloc's rules in areas like food and farming standards. Britain will also have to pay for its firms to access the EU's new £125billion defence procurement programme. But Sir Keir insisted that Britain will not be 'paying into the EU budget in the way that EU members do', with payments instead tied directly to benefits. No 10 said the financial cost of the deal would be dwarfed by the benefits, which it estimates will add £9billion to the economy by 2040. The PM was also boosted by an intervention from Morrisons' chief executive Rami Baitieh, who said the deal would 'ease a source of pressure on food prices'. In the Commons, Eurosceptic MPs condemned the deal. Mrs Badenoch said the deal was 'bad for bills; it is bad for jobs; and it is bad for borders'. She condemned the decision to extend EU fishing access to British waters for another 12 years as a 'sellout'. And she said the decision to permanently align with the EU's rules in areas like agriculture was a 'total capitulation', adding: 'The Prime Minister is going to pay the EU to abide by laws that we have no say on.' Tory MP Mark Francois said: 'The British people voted peacefully and democratically to leave the European Union, so why has the Prime Minister surrendered that right and made us a rule-taker from the EU once again?' Sir Keir described the warning as 'nonsense' and insisted that the UK 'will have a role in shaping any future rules'. He said the deal was just a 'first step', adding that Labour hoped to 'take our co-operation and co-ordination further, step by step.' But he appeared to rule out rejoining the EU's customs union, saying that would cut across other recent trade deals with India and the US, adding: 'I am not prepared to rip up the benefits that we have negotiated in those deals'. In Brussels, EU diplomats celebrated, with one telling the BBC: 'The deal is balanced – arguably with favourable terms for the EU – and simply shows that splendid isolation is not an option in today's climate.' The deal has provoked a furious backlash from the fishing industry, with senior figures describing it as a 'horror show'. But Environment Secretary Steve Reed claimed it was a 'reasonably good deal' for the sector. He said ministers had resisted pressure from Brussels to allow even more access for EU trawlers and that the deal should spell the end of the bloc's ban on British shellfish.
