Students and community members in Kelowna have joined groups from around Canada and the USA and have set up an encampment at the UBC Okanagan campus in a stand of solidarity with Palestine.
The group called UBCO 4 Palestine, gathered at 5 a.m. on May 13 in the UBCO Courtyard. They are calling on the University of British Columbia to divest from Israel’s “occupation and genocide” of Palestinians.
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In Canada, demonstrations at the University of McGill in Montreal, the University of Toronto, the University of Victoria and Vancouver Island University in Nanaimo, have also called for the academic institutions to divest from weapons makers and other companies. Tensions have risen at some south-of-the-border events as students have been arrested and different protest groups have clashed recently.
The attendees also call on for the university to publicly condemn the ongoing genocide.
At 11 a.m. on May 13, protesters will give a speech and address the UBCO administration.
The protests began after Israel’s response to an attack on civilians by a terrorist organization called Hamas on Oct 7. The assault by Hamas killed approximately 1,200 people, mostly civilians in Israel and took more as captives. In response, Israel’s military has killed over 34,500 Palestinians living in Gaza.
Capital News has reached out to UBCO for a statement.
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