A group of University of Chicago alumni has renamed the Institute of Politics building the Casbah of Bassel al-Araj in honor of the revolutionary martyr assassinated by Israeli occupation forces (IOF) after taking over the building. 

A banner unfurled in front of the building proclaiming the new name.

On this day in 2017, Bassel Al-Araj, a Palestinian activist, was killed by Israeli occupation forces after confronting them till the very last bullet. #Palestine pic.twitter.com/WCRlAcgk8x

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) March 6, 2022

Following hours of protests, law enforcement was called, and the encampment was dismantled. Still determined, the alumni marched to the president's house to continue their demonstration, demanding that the university disclose and divest from Israeli interests complicit in the genocide in Gaza.

A group of University of Chicago alumni deoccupied the Institute of Politics building and renamed it Casbah of Basel Al-Araj in honour of the revolutionary martyr who was killed by the Israeli occupation forces. The alumni also set up another encampment in solidarity with Gaza.… pic.twitter.com/HBIuEPFB7W

— ⩜⃝ علياء🇵🇸 (@Shensawee) May 18, 2024

According to a statement published by the alumni, their cries for justice have been "met with indifference and continued genocide."

The statement details that drastic action is needed to dismantle the "white supremacist, settler-colonial terror" worldwide, which, according to them, includes the police, arms dealers, lawyers, and politicians, as well as universities that allow this to continue. 

The University of Chicago is complicit in the genocide, the statement adds, for "enabling the Chicago Boys to be puppet masters" of Pinochet's regime in Chile, as well as policing and silencing Black communities. 

The statement further adds that the war against the agents of genocide requires "the recognition that the people around us are fighting against a common enemy" and that "struggles for liberation are interconnected." 

The founder of Institute of Politics, it continues, was founded by David Axelrod, "Obama's right-hand man" as Obama "rained down death on civilians" and deported more immigrants than any president. 

Lastly, the statement says that those responsible for war "do not deserve peace" and cites that the Palestinian resistance continues to escalate in the face of the Israeli occupation.

"We take this building because we refuse to allow normal life to continue while violence is done to our communities here and everywhere."

Who is Bassel al-Araj?

Bassel al-Araj was a Palestinian activist, writer, and intellectual. In 2017, Israeli occupation forces killed al-Araj during a confrontation that lasted for hours, during which the Palestinian activist resisted from his house until the last bullet.

US campus protests persist despite crackdowns, mass arrests

Pro-Palestine protests have swept university campuses across the United States for the past three weeks, with calls for the divestment from "Israel" or Israeli-affiliated institutions and an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

As student protests and movements increasingly gained momentum, arrests were made as police tried to thwart their efforts, and the government mobilized to introduce legislation that would ultimately punish those participating. 

Pro-Palestine advocates have established encampments or conducted sit-ins at more than 100 college campuses across approximately 40 states.

In response, authorities have made nearly 3,000 arrests, amid employing tear gas, instances of police brutality, and even firing rubber bullets at peaceful student protesters.

After Harvard agreed to discuss student concerns on the university's endowment concerning "Israel", protesters against the Israeli war on Gaza took down their tents in the university yard on May 14.

Harvard oversees the biggest academic endowment in the world, amounting to around $50 billion, and invests part of it in funds and companies, some of which are linked to "Israel".