Vrije Universiteit Brussel wants to end a collaboration project with two Israeli institutions

The Brussels university is currently screening all ongoing research projects in which an Israeli partner is involved. She decides on her collaboration project by project.

After a negative evaluation, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB) has decided to stop its collaboration on a scientific study on Artificial Intelligence (AI). Two Israeli partners are also participating in that study. The VUB reported this on Wednesday afternoon. “We will consult with the financing European Commission to withdraw from the project,” it said.

After the escalation of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian extremist organization Hamas in the Gaza Strip, the Brussels university decided to thoroughly screen all ongoing research projects in which an Israeli partner is involved. She wants to decide project by project about her collaborations with institutions in Israel. This concerns seven projects in total.

Collaborations with Israeli institutions are also under scrutiny elsewhere, now that student protests surrounding the war in Gaza have spread to Belgian universities. For example, Ghent University shared a list on Tuesday with all Israeli partners that have been screened over the past six years in the context of possible collaborations. But according to students occupying the Ghent University Forum (UFO), it is “still not transparent”.

The VUB wants to offer full transparency about its ongoing collaborative projects within the European Horizon program, through which the European Union funds research and in which Israeli institutions can also participate. “None of those projects have a connection with military applications,” emphasizes Peter Van Rompaey of the VUB. “Yet they are now being thoroughly evaluated in light of the unacceptable escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.”