Belgian police evict students from Brussels university building
Most protesters had left after an ultimatum, the rector said, while the university plans to restore the building so classes can resume.
Police in Belgium cleared a Brussels university building of student protesters on Saturday, the state-run news agency Anadolu Agency reported.
The operation took place at the P1 building on the Solbosch campus, and Belga, Belgium's national news agency, also reported the eviction.
The occupation had drawn university students, secondary school pupils and art school students, who said they were part of a wider youth movement across Europe against worsening social conditions.
University Rector Annemie Schaus said most of the occupiers had obeyed a deadline to leave by Thursday, but a group stayed behind.
Schaus said the protest had caused vandalism, people had entered offices without permission and university activities had been disrupted.
She also condemned hateful graffiti and open calls for violence that she said were found inside the building.
Talks with the protesters failed, Schaus said, so the university filed legal action and police acted under a judicial order.
The protesters confirmed the eviction on social media and claimed several activists were arrested during the operation.
The occupiers had named the building after Aicha Aboubaia, a student from Gaza who reportedly was refused a Belgian visa.
The university said crews were preparing to secure and repair the building so teaching and research could return to normal.
