The president of Humboldt University in Berlin, Julia von Blumenthal, has expressed her regret that no agreement was reached with pro-Palestinian activists following the clearing of an occupied university building.
"I'm not sure whether it would have succeeded, but I had the impression that we had taken a good step with this dialogue," von Blumenthal said on Thursday after talks with pro-Palestinian activists who had occupied a building.
"The order then came from the very top to end the occupation. I followed this instruction," she said.
She was referring to Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner, she explained when asked.
The university would not press charges for trespassing, as the temporary occupation had been tolerated, von Blumenthal added.
She could not yet comment on questions of damage to property as she had not yet had the opportunity to view the building in full.
She said of the spokesman's talks with the activists that it had been possible, with moderation and mutual respect, to talk about where the two sides "might even be able to come closer together and also to talk about what divides [them]."
It was possible to listen to the suffering of the Palestinian students. Of course, she always had the suffering of the Jewish students in mind as well, the university president added.
