Radboud University files police report over “life-threatening” pro-Palestinian protest

Radboud University are going to look into whether any damage was sustained during the occupation of the Radboud laboratory on Tuesday, according to a statement from the university’s executive board. The laboratory contained gases that, if released, could have killed everyone inside within minutes, the police said Wednesday afternoon in a statement about their intervention following the occupation. The board has filed a report against the protesters.

The lab houses superconducting magnets and cooling liquids. According to the police, improper use could release gases that lower the temperature to -220 degrees and deplete all oxygen in the room, potentially causing everyone present to die within a very short time.

Activists from Nijmegen Student Encampment occupied a Radboud University building in Nijmegen for several hours on Tuesday, demanding that the university cancel its recently announced collaborations with Israeli institutions.

Police halted the initial eviction to avoid endangering the lives of staff, other emergency responders, and the occupiers. The activists eventually left the building voluntarily.

Rector Magnificus José Sanders said the demonstrators “created a dangerous situation” by entering the building. “We were completely shocked,” she added during a Wednesday press conference.

Professor and lab director Arno Kentgens also expressed his concern about the protest. “My main worry was that they might chain themselves inside. Even if the magnet itself isn’t affected, you cannot safely use a cutting torch there afterward,” he said.

Dean Sybrand de Jong also warned that moving metal objects to barricade doors could have caused serious accidents. Kentgens highlighted an additional risk of suffocation from the gases used to operate the lab equipment.

Sanders denied that the university as a whole is collaborating with Israeli institutions and declined to comment on projects from individual departments. “That is up to the faculties. I won’t answer that right now. It may be their motivation, but our concern was safety,” she said. Radboud staff are permitted to collaborate with colleagues in Israel.

Kentgens confirmed that his lab has no direct partnerships with Israeli institutions. While the activists alleged that a staff member was collaborating with Israelis, the director clarified, “He is not part of our lab and has never worked here.”

It remains unclear how the activists gained access to the building. “The doors close very slowly, so we suspect they may have slipped in unnoticed behind a staff member,” Kentgens explained.

Authorities will investigate any potential damage and assess the costs involved. Kentgens commented, “Our impression is that the situation is not too serious.”