Jan Lintsen, vice-president of the Executive Board, will become chief financial officer of the Royal Netherlands Aerospace Centre (KNLR). Lintsen will start work in his new position from 15 June. This means he will leave the UvA a little earlier than the end of his second term on the board. “With the end of my time at the UvA in sight, the opportunity came along to become CFO of the KNLR, a wonderful knowledge institute in aerospace. I could not pass up that opportunity. The fact that I am already making the switch in mid-June is due to the simultaneous appointment of two other board members. The KNLR will have an entirely new, three-member board.” The KNLR carries out national and international missions in the fields of aircraft development, aircraft use and aerospace, both independently and in cooperation with other institutes and industries. It is not yet known by whom Lintsen will be succeeded at the UvA. (DW)

A short walk-out took place at the Roeterseilandcampus on Thursday. According to a pamphlet, 17 April marks “Palestinian Prisoners” Day, commemorating the thousands of Palestinian prisoners still detained.

About 200 people attended the walk-out, listening to speeches on the bridge in front of the ABCD building. This entrances to this building on the bridge side were closed as a precaution. The same applied to building E. Around 13.45, the crowd moved towards Roetersstraat. (DW)

Amnesty International Netherlands is shocked with the police intervention at the Maagdenhuis and other UvA buildings during the pro-Palestine protests last Monday. According to the organization, plainclothes officers used unnecessary force when intervening. Amnesty is calling for a thorough investigation into the police action via their Instagram page, posting images showing the alleged excessive police violence.
 
“Arrests for possible vandalism, if there is no resistance, should be made without violence,” Amnesty states. The removal of peaceful student protesters should also be non-violent. The organization calls the use of the baton overhead “almost never permissible,” because of the risk of serious injury. (MvdV)

The 11 protesters arrested on Monday at the Maagdenhuis occupation have been released, the police confirmed. They were detained on suspicion of housebreaking, vandalism, open violence and violating an area ban. The case is now with the Public Prosecution Service (OM), which will decide whether the suspects will be brought to trial. 
 
After last May’s occupation, some protesters were sentenced to prison. Others were acquitted. (IS)

This afternoon, several pro-Palestine activists demonstrated at various University of Amsterdam locations. The group of approximately 10 demonstrators with Palestinian flags briefly blocked the entrance to the P.C. Hoofthuis and disrupted a lecture and a private meeting at the Oudemanhuispoort and Roeterseiland respectively, according to reports on the Instagram page of uva.intifada

The activists are once again demanding that the University of Amsterdam break all ties with Israeli organizations and universities. In their messages, they refer to the Maagdenhuis demonstrators who were violently evicted from the building last Monday, which they say “shows the true face of the University of Amsterdam.”  
 
On their Instagram page, the activists have announced that they will be present “in every classroom and on every campus” in the coming weeks, as long as the university does not sever its ties with Israel.  

Harvard University is losing the equivalent of two billion euros in US government subsidies after refusing to comply with Trump’s demands, according to NOS. The Trump administration wants the university to, among other things, discontinue diversity programs, ban face masks and take strict action against alleged anti-Semitism on campus. Trump had previously targeted universities such as Columbia, Princeton and Brown for allegedly not doing enough to stop pro-Palestinian protests.

Harvard calls the demands ‘unheard of’ and contrary to constitutional rights. “No government, regardless of which party, may dictate what private universities should teach, who they can admit or hire and what subjects they want to research,” said the director of Harvard Alan Garber. (MvdV)

This afternoon, some 150 pro-Palestine demonstrators gathered on the bridge at the Roeterseiland campus. The demonstrators are demanding that the UvA cut all ties with Israeli organisations and universities. The walk-out and sit-in by students and employees was scheduled for 12:30 pm, as announced on the Instagram page of Amsterdam.encampment.

A banner with the words “Solidarity with the student intifada” hangs from the bridge. The demonstrators chant slogans such as “Israel, go to hell” and “UvA, cut your ties.” The buildings on campus were closed. After an hour, the group left under police escort and began a march through the city.

Earlier this morning, the facades and windows of the Amsterdam University College were also daubed with graffiti. The graffiti read phrases such as “Your hands are bloody.” (TH)

The demonstration organised by VU for Palestine on Wednesday afternoon has resulted in the occupation of the BelleVUe building at the VU University. This was reported by university newspaper Ad Valvas, which has now started a live blog (in Dutch). A small group dressed in black and with their faces covered entered the BelleVUE building with a megaphone. The demonstrators explained their action from an open window on the first floor. They said they would remain in the building until the VU (Free University) reveals its collaborations with Israeli institutions. The editorial staff of Ad Valvas is based in the BelleVUe building and is therefore close to the action to report on it. A spokesperson for the occupiers will not say whether the action was planned or started spontaneously, but does say that they are prepared to maintain the occupation for a day or two. (DW)

Junior doctors taking an exam today at the VU Amsterdam were instructed in an email from the university to bring noise-cancelling headphones, writes AT5. A pro-Palestine demonstration is planned for 12.30 PM on the VU campus square, which could cause a disturbance.

According to the VU spokesperson, the exam could not be cancelled because it was not organised by the university but by the Dutch Society for Radiology (NVvR). The VU will address the demonstrators if the protest causes disruption to education and research on campus. “If the protesters do not respond, we will be forced to inform the authorities,” said the spokesperson. (SvdB)