Students at UT Dallas rally for university to sever ties with Israel-linked companies

UTD students rally and demand sever ties with Israel

A small group of pro-Palestinian students rallied at UT Dallas, demanding the university divest from companies tied to Israel and urging support for their "cut ties with occupation" petition.

RICHARDSON, Texas - A small group of pro-Palestinian students gathered at UT Dallas this afternoon calling for the university to divest from companies with ties to Israel.

What we know:

On the campus of UT Dallas" in Richardson on Tuesday, a group of pro-Palestinian students held a rally. Marking the two-year anniversary of Hamas' surprise attack on Israel.

That triggered the ongoing conflict that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

In May 2024, 21 students and staff members were arrested for establishing an encampment on campus. The students faced disciplinary action from the university, which they appealed.

Their vocal message has remained the same.

What they're saying:

"We continue to stand up for Palestine, and we continue to stand the people of Gaza, regardless of what we face, and regardless of the repression the student movement faces," said Aysha Ahmed, student at UT Dallas.

"We will continue to demand that UT Dallas digest from death and cut all ties with companies complicit with human rights violations in Gaza, Palestine, and across the globe. Gaza is not just a headline because of people, students like us, parents, workers and children. They’re not asking for pity, they’re asking for life, and we act here, we react for them," said Yasmin Hassan, a student at UT Dallas.

One student protester says he's lost dozens of family memories from the violence in Gaza.

"For us, this is not distant or abstract. It is our families in Gaza who have been bombed, starved and forced from their homes," said Ahmed Elsafadi, another UT Dallas student.

"Entire apartment buildings are reduced to rubble with grandparents, parents and children buried together. Generations erased in seconds."

Dig deeper:

The group prayed for an end to the conflict and for Palestine to be free.

"For two years, we have watched a genocide unfold, not in secret, not in silence, but in full view of every so-called democratic institution said to uphold human rights," said student, Ali Hamza.

"We are living through a moment of calculated violence."

What's next:

After the rally, the students held a peaceful sit-in on campus. They're also urging people to sign their "cut ties with occupation" petition.