TU Eindhoven (TU/e) is not currently entering into new collaborations with institutions in Israel through ‘the humanitarian catastrophe’ in Gaza. The university is also stopping cooperation with the Israeli University of Technion for the time being. At the beginning of this month it turned out that it has ‘unmistakably strong ties’ with the defense sector.
The TU/e board announced the measures on Monday in the University Council. The Technical University follows Tilburg University, the University of Amsterdam, Radboud University in Nijmegen and Erasmus University Rotterdam. These institutions have previously taken measures to at least reduce collaborations with Israel.
At the beginning of this month, research by Follow the Money and The Investigative Desk showed that the TU/e is involved in research projects that can be used for military purposes of the Israeli army. Together with other Dutch universities, Israeli companies and knowledge institutions, the TU/e cooperates on a total of 28 technologies with a so -called ‘dual use’ technologies that can be used both civil and militarily. The TU/e turned out to be involved in eight of these projects.
Taking steps was inevitable, says chairman Koen Janssen of the Executive Board. “Given the continuing and worsening human rights violations in Gaza, the growing general consensus on the illegal nature of the actions of the Israeli government in Gaza and the humanitarian catastrophe that takes place, we believe that unbridled collaboration with Israeli partners, in particular with strong tires with the Israeli sector”
Extra careful
The TU/e also sets up a special committee that must assess ‘sensitive collaborations’ next month. In the meantime, there will be no new ‘institutional’ collaborations with Israeli partners. Individual scientists keep some freedom, but they must be ‘extra careful’.