More than a dozen students at Princeton University are participating in a hunger strike after the university refused to heed students' requests for divestment from Israel.
The students have said they will abstain from all food and drink, except for water, until the university agrees to boycott Israeli universities, disclose its investments and divest from any company that profits off or is involved in Israel's "ongoing military campaign, occupation and apartheid policies."
"If [President Christopher Eisgruber] wants to sit in Nassau Hall and watch us starve on his lawn, then that's what we'll do," said Princeton senior David Chmielewski, according to the student newspaper the Daily Princetonian.
The hunger strike comes as Israel's war in Gaza seems to be reaching an inflection point. The Palestinian militant group Hamas agreed to a ceasefire deal, crafted by Egypt and Qatar, but Israel declined - characterizing the offer as a "trick."
Meanwhile, Israel ordered hundreds of thousands of civilians to evacuate from Rafah, where more than 1 million people have sought shelter as Israeli airstrikes decimated much of the besieged enclave.
The United States has repeatedly cautioned Israel against a ground invasion in Rafah - describing the proposed action as a "mistake" with civilian consequences greater than any potential military gain.
Princeton is not the first university to see students go on hunger strikes - at fellow Ivy League school Brown University, 19 students went on an 8-day strike in February. The strike did not see an immediate impact, but when the university agreed to vote on divestment the striking students were among the signatories to a document outlining the terms of the deal.
There were initially 17 students signed on to hunger strike but the numbers fluctuated over the weekend, according to Princeton Israeli Apartheid Divest. As of their most recent Instagram post, on May 5, 15 students were striking and a further 28 were engaging in solidarity fasts.
"We commit our bodies to [the] liberation of Palestine," the organization wrote on Saturday. "PRINCETON, hear us now! We will not be moved!"
