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Universities Slam Belgian Refusal to Evacuate Gaza Students

Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. (Reuters)
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Universities Slam Belgian Refusal to Evacuate Gaza Students

Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. (Reuters)
Young Palestinians amid the rubble of buildings destroyed during the war, at Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip, August 5, 2026. (Reuters)

Belgium's top universities condemned on Monday the government's refusal to help 13 students from war-torn Gaza who received scholarships at Belgian universities reach the country.

Brussels set aside plans to evacuate the Palestinian students last week in a case that has split the coalition government.

The rectors of the European country's top 10 universities expressed their "dismay" at the move in a letter, accusing the administration of using the students as "bargaining chips" in a "disgraceful political horse-trading".

Centrist Foreign Minister Maxime Prevot has advocated in favor of evacuating the students but has faced opposition from the Flemish conservatives party of Prime Minister Bart De Wever, according to a government source.

Prevot said one member of the five-party coalition demanded concessions on migration, including the creation of deportation centers, in return for greenlighting the evacuations.

"They must not be treated as bargaining chips or as variables to be adjusted in political debates on migration," the rectors wrote of the Gaza students.

"Their cases must be assessed for what they are: those of students and researchers who have been awarded scholarships on the basis of their academic merit and who have all expressed their intention to return to their home countries to contribute to their reconstruction."

The students are among about 1,500 Palestinians in Gaza currently waiting to reach Belgium, having been granted the right to do so, mainly under family reunification rules, according to several NGOs.

Yet, evacuations from the Palestinian territory at war with Israel are proceeding at a trickle, with activists and now the universities accusing the government of deliberately slowing down the process.

"Discussions in recent weeks also show that the obstacles cited do not stem from insurmountable constraints but rather from a lack of political will," the university chiefs wrote.

The case is not isolated, with Palestinian students hoping to study in Italy, Türkiye, the Netherlands, Germany also reporting delays in recent months.

Palestinian group Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which killed 1,221 people, according to official Israeli figures.

Israel's offensive has since claimed at least 73,470 lives in Gaza, according to the Gaza health ministry, which operates under Hamas.

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World

Zelensky Speaks to US Envoys as Trump Lashes Out

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
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Zelensky Speaks to US Envoys as Trump Lashes Out

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky arrives for a media conference at the EU summit in Brussels, Friday, Oct. 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke with top US envoys Sunday to try to ease tensions, as Donald Trump accused his counterpart of not wanting to end the war with Russia.

Zelensky spoke to US officials Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner as both Russia and Ukraine hit each other's energy sites, with Moscow leaving thousands without power and Kyiv carrying out the largest drone attack on Saint Petersburg since the start of the war in 2022, said AFP.

Trump and Zelensky have clashed as the US president blocked new sanctions on Russia and struck a diesel deal with Moscow, fueling fears in Kyiv and Europe that the White House was steering towards Moscow.

A Wall Street Journal report that Russian President Vladimir Putin proposed a meeting on Ukraine with Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping -- but not Zelensky -- has set off more alarm bells.

On Sunday, Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform that he was in the process of negotiating peace between Russia and Ukraine and making "great progress," but claimed: "Zelenskyy doesn't care, and frankly, with all of the money that Europe is famously giving him... he doesn't want to end this war, and probably never did."

"Zelenskyy is using Diesel Refineries in Russia as a target, knowing that these attacks are seriously hurting the world diesel markets, including those in the United States," Trump said.

Earlier, after speaking to Trump's business partner Witkoff and son-in-law Kushner, Zelensky said "a lot depends" on the US position in the war but that "it is clear that there are many things that matter to all of us and that this war must be brought to an end."

Ukraine was ready to work "constructively" and "honestly", he said. "We expect exactly this approach from all our partners -- both from the Europeans and, of course, from the American side."

He said he discussed deliveries of US Patriot air defense systems, as Kyiv struggles to counter Russian missiles.

Zelensky earlier told US broadcaster NBC it would be a "historic mistake" if Washington formally supported Russia and that he hoped Trump would "change his decisions."

But he also said he was "thankful" the United States resumed intelligence sharing after a pause that left his country vulnerable to Russian missile strikes.

- Thousands without power -

A US-led push to end Europe's deadliest conflict since World War II has so far not brought about a breakthrough and Trump has in the past grown frustrated with both Zelensky and Putin because of their lack of progress.

Zelensky spoke to the American officials as he accused Russia of breaking Trump's "energy ceasefire" 76 times and warning Moscow planned to deprive Ukrainians of heat and electricity before winter.

Russian strikes left "tens of thousands" without power in several regions, he said, with Ukrainian officials reporting three people had been killed.

Ukraine's army launched drones at Putin's hometown of Saint Petersburg late Sunday, setting an oil refinery ablaze and killing one person, Moscow said.

Russia's VKontakte social network said its data center was hit and Ozon -- Russia's second largest retailer -- also reported a strike on its logistics center.

The head of the wider Leningrad region, Alexander Drozdenko, said air defense shot down 144 Ukrainian drones, with state media saying this was the largest attack on the city since the start of the war.

- 'Dreadful routine of war' -

The Kremlin, however, said Ukrainian attacks on its cities will not change its war aims.

Putin has repeatedly said Moscow intends to seize the rest of eastern Ukraine and, in a fifth year of war, few see a way out of the conflict.

"There's a general feeling: they're attacking, we're attacking -- it's become the dreadful routine of war," 58-year-old Galina told AFP in Saint Petersburg.

Moscow has rained drones and missiles on Ukrainian cities daily and Kyiv says its strikes are fair retribution.

Sergei, another Saint Petersburg resident who is also 58, said he felt his apartment block shake and quickly realized it was a drone attack.

"I don't know if I was scared, what must be will be," he said.

Ukrainian strikes caused nationwide fuel shortages in Russia earlier this year.

World

Iran's Guards Say Oil Tanker on Fire after Hitting Mine in Hormuz

Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
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Iran's Guards Say Oil Tanker on Fire after Hitting Mine in Hormuz

Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)
Oil tankers sail near the Strait of Hormuz (Reuters)

Iran's Revolutionary Guards said Monday an oil tanker caught fire in the Strait of Hormuz after hitting a mine, the latest such incident since Tehran tightened its grip of the waterway.

Iran seized control of the strait after war broke out against the United States and Israel late February, choking off the vital shipping route which normally carries about a fifth of the world's oil.

The Iranian republic has demanded that all ships seek its authorization before transiting.

"An oil tanker, which was in violation, struck a naval mine south of the Strait of Hormuz, resulting in an explosion and a fire in its engine room," Iranian state media quoted the Guards as saying.

The tanker was travelling in the strait's "unauthorized southern route" and had disabled its positioning and navigation systems, the statement said.

It came a day after the Guards said two oil tankers caught fire in the strait, both after hitting mines.

The Guards' naval commander Admiral Ali Ozmaei warned this week that any vessel that deactivated its navigation systems would be considered "hostile".

The United States has imposed a naval counter-blockade on Iranian oil exports in response to Tehran's blockade on the waterway.

World

France’s Macron Declines Interior Minister’s Offer to Resign

A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
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France’s Macron Declines Interior Minister’s Offer to Resign

A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)
A French firefighter responds to a street barricade burns as clashes between riot police and demonstrators continue for the second day during nationwide protests against the high cost of living in Paris, France, 18 October 2026. (EPA)

French President Emmanuel Macron has declined Interior Minister Laurent Nunez's offer to resign after widespread weekend rioting, the Elysee presidential office said on Monday.

The demonstrations have been sparked by ‌public anger ‌over rising living ‌costs, ⁠faltering public services ⁠and also the state of schools.

Macron said Nunez should stay to ensure a chain of command is retained within ⁠the police and security ‌forces, ‌and has also asked Nunez ‌to set up as ‌quickly as possible new approaches to deal with looters, the Elysee added.

Nationwide demonstrations erupted ‌into riots on Saturday, with a town hall ⁠torched, ⁠shops pillaged and buildings covered in graffiti as violent groups clashed with police in cities.

More clashes also broke out in Paris and Marseille on Sunday, where riot police intervened to prevent attempts to ransack businesses.