Presidency press release - Geopolitical context in the Middle East

Paris, October 11, 2023





The violence that has plunged the Middle East into mourning over the past few days has aroused great emotion at Inalco. We express our absolute condemnation of the terrorist attacks carried out by Hamas in Israel, and our deep sadness and solidarity with the victims of these attacks as well as with the civilians affected by the Israeli army's reprisals in the Palestinian territories.



While we are reassured today that no member of our university community has been directly affected by this violence, we know that many are affected by the situation of loved ones in Israel and the Palestinian territories. We would like to take this opportunity to remind you of the existence of a crisis center to support our staff and students.



We also wanted to express our deep concern about preserving the open space for exchange that Inalco represents. With understanding between peoples at the heart of its vocation, our establishment is home to several courses combining the learning of Arabic, Hebrew and the regional context, in a perspective of dialogue that is particularly crucial in the current context. We trust that our academic and student community will be able to preserve this spirit, guaranteeing the debate of ideas in the strict respect of the dignity of others, without giving in to the temptation of importing the terms of the conflict in the Middle East.
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In this context, and in line with the message transmitted by our supervisory body, we would like to remind you that the glorification of terrorism, incitement to hatred and violence, anti-Semitism and racism are prohibited by law and carry heavy penalties. Such acts run counter to the very vocation of Inalco, which is based on a detailed knowledge of languages and civilizations, with the aim of opening up barriers and promoting dialogue. As a preventive measure, we would like to remind you of the contact details of the school's racism and anti-Semitism referent: mission.racisme@inalco.fr.



Finally, once the time for emotion has given way to that for analysis, we will initiate a series of conferences to invite everyone to take a step back from these events, the context in which they took place, and their repercussions. In the meantime, we appeal for restraint and vigilance to ensure that our establishment remains a place of goodwill and exchange, where everyone should be free to evolve without fear.


The Presidency of Inalco