A growing number of universities, academic institutions and scholarly bodies across the world are severing links with Israeli academia, citing complicity in Israel’s actions in Gaza, The Guardian reported.
According to Gaza’s health ministry, more than 63,000 people have been killed in the enclave, most of them civilians, with UN-backed experts confirming a “man-made famine” amid widespread destruction.
In response, institutions from South America to Europe have distanced themselves from Israeli universities. The Federal University of Ceará in Brazil cancelled an innovation summit last year, while universities in Norway, Belgium, Spain and Ireland’s Trinity College Dublin have also cut ties. The University of Amsterdam has ended a student exchange programme with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and the European Association of Social Anthropologists has barred collaboration with Israeli academia, The Guardian noted.
The campaign, led by the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, argues that Israeli universities are entwined with the military and state institutions. Stephanie Adam, a spokesperson for the group, told The Guardian that there is “a moral and legal obligation for universities to end ties with complicit Israeli universities.”
While support for boycotts is rising, many UK, French and German universities remain opposed. Universities UK has reiterated its stance against “blanket academic boycotts,” calling them an infringement on academic freedom. The Royal Society has taken a similar position, The Guardian said.
Reactions among academics remain divided. Nobel laureate Venki Ramakrishnan told The Guardian that while Israel’s response in Gaza has been “hugely disproportionate,” punishing academics opposed to the government risks unfair consequences. Israeli historian Ilan Pappé countered that most academics support state structures, providing courses to the military and security services.
British-Palestinian surgeon Ghassan Abu-Sittah, rector of the University of Glasgow, told The Guardian that students and academics in the UK are pushing for boycotts but are blocked by governing bodies—prompting researchers to take “unofficial action” by ending collaborations themselves.
The impact on Israel’s research sector remains contested, though fears are mounting over a potential “brain drain” if international partnerships dry up. Israel is heavily reliant on global scientific cooperation: since 2021 it has received 875.9 million Euros under the EU’s Horizon Europe programme. In July, the European Commission proposed partially suspending Israel from the scheme, targeting entities in dual-use technologies like AI, drones and cybersecurity, according to The Guardian.
Despite resistance from 10 EU member states, concerns persist that Israel may be excluded from Horizon Europe’s successor programme in 2028. The Guardian highlighted that Israel’s share of EU research funding has already declined, with only 10 of 478 early-career researchers receiving European Research Council grants in 2025, compared with 30 the previous year.
Israeli academics told The Guardian that boycotts misplace blame and undermine scientific collaboration, but supporters argue otherwise. “The threat of academic boycott is sufficient to push the Israeli government into ending this genocide,” Abu-Sittah said.
