Student hunger strike for Gaza continues in New York City

NEW YORK

A hunger strike by students in New York City entered its 14th consecutive day Monday in support of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

Students from City University of New York (CUNY) Graduate Center, Brooklyn College and Baruch College launched an indefinite hunger strike on May 27 to protest "the Israeli-US war machine (that) continues to starve Palestinians in Gaza to death and rain bombs down upon them."

They also demanded that the universities divest from Israel.

Some of the signs said "Hunger Strike 4 Gaza," "Day 14," "Free Palestine," "You Can Not Cover Up Genocide" and "930,000 Children Being Starved To Death."

In recent weeks, dozens of people across the US have gone on hunger strikes to demand an end to the genocide in Palestine. They included students, faculty and staff at several campuses in California, Oregon and New Jersey, including UCLA, Stanford, the University of Oregon and Yale.

The Israeli army, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing nearly 55,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children.

Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.

Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.

*Diyar Guldogan from Washington, DC contributed to this report