RAMALLAH: On Tuesday, students at Birzeit University protested a visit by British Consul General Sir Vincent Fein, reports Palestine News Network. Fein left the university, located near Ramallah, in response to the opposition. Student groups and members of the student council were involved in protesting the visit, the PNN report continues. In December, following the Palestinian Authority's upgrade to “observer state" in the UN General Assembly, the British Foreign Office called Israel's plan to settle the E1 area of the West Bank “deplorable," joining a swath of other European governments who summoned their respective Israeli ambassadors in protest. Nonetheless, many view the European Union as too soft on Israeli settlement activity and human rights violations, while also maintain that the British have a historical responsibility in Israel and Palestine. Birzeit University was the first Palestinian higher learning institution and hosts some 8,000 students annually. Its campus has often been the center of political activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. BN
