In a tense context, the Free University of Brussels confirms the "Rima Hassan" promotion

The decision, voted for by a majority of students in the class, was ratified on Thursday by the Belgian university, despite a heated controversy.

The 2025 class of the Faculty of Law at the Université libre de Bruxelles (ULB) has chosen to name itself the "Rima Hassan class," after the rebellious Franco-Palestinian MEP. The decision, voted on by a majority of the class's students, was ratified on Thursday, August 28, by the university's management. The name has sparked controversy in Belgium, a society particularly concerned about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict .

Off the record, several students explained that they chose to name their class "Rima Hassan" for two reasons. First, to salute her fight against, they say, "the criminalization of voices for peace." A legal argument, they say, coupled with a second political motivation: to show unambiguous support for the Palestinian people, as Rima Hassan herself has done on numerous occasions.

On the other hand, the students who opposed the choice of this name are keeping a low profile, for "fear of reprisals," they explain. They describe a particularly tense climate within the Free University of Brussels in recent days. By endorsing this choice, the management did not want to deviate from the Brussels tradition which requires that the students' choice is sovereign, as long as it respects democratic rules. This is the case according to the university authorities, who decided in their favor despite heavy pressure from outside. An open letter was thus signed by 1,300 people calling on it to reject the choice of Rima Hassan's name.

The rebellious MEP welcomed this announcement on social media on Thursday, declaring herself "honored to sponsor this new class." " I thank all those who stood firm in the face of media and political relentlessness, and in particular the students who were treated like children, denounced, and slandered," she wrote.