The University of Münster has several connections with Israeli universities and companies that play a central role in Israel’s colonial system. We explain the role Israeli universities play in this system here.
Maintaining such relationships with Israeli universities and thereby ignoring their role in the colonial regime, and even denying it, leads to the normalization of the oppression of the Palestinian people in the territories more or less controlled by Israel (Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and the territories occupied in 1948 (today Israel)).
What is normalization?
Normalization – , tatbee’ in Arabic, means dealing with or presenting something inherently abnormal, such as oppression and injustice as if it were normal.
BDS National Committee
Normalization with/of Israel is, then, the idea of making occupation, apartheid, and settler colonialism seem normal and establishing normal relations with the Israeli regime instead of supporting the struggle led by the Indigenous Palestinian people to end the abnormal conditions and structures of oppression.
How is normalization carried out?
Normalization is expressed through joint Israeli–Palestinian projects (i.e., outwardly positive forms of cooperation presented as promoting peace) when they involve Israeli institutions that do not recognize the 3 rights of Palestinians as stated in the BDS call:
- the right of return,
- the end of occupation and colonization of all Arab lands, and
- equal rights for Palestinian citizens of Israel.
Normalization is also reflected in joint (research) projects, cultural activities, academic cooperation, or conferences with Israeli institutions that do not recognize Palestinian rights and are directly or indirectly involved in maintaining occupation and oppression. Such forms of cooperation create an impression of equality and “normalcy,” while structural injustice continues to exist.
And in Münster… ?
The University of Münster maintains numerous research collaborations and exchange programmes with Israeli universities and companies. These are deeply embedded in the political, military, and ideological system in that they materially and ideologically sustain the oppression of Palestinians (more information can be found here.) In addition, the University of Münster has contracts with tech companies that contribute to and profit from the oppression of the Palestinian people.
The reality of Palestinians is not being adequately addressed, nor is space being created for it. In addition, the University of Münster rejects any actions in support of a free Palestine. The university administration has prevented film screenings and threatened pro-Palestine students with expulsion.
Exchange programmes with Israeli partner universities of the University of Münster
Students at the University of Münster can study for one semester at an Israeli partner university. These study abroad programmes aim to provide international students with a “positive experience” of Israel while obscuring the occupation as well as the oppression and disenfranchisement of Palestinians.
Nowhere on the University of Münster’s website is there information about how Palestinians are treated within these institutions or how they are systematically oppressed. What can be found, however, are reports and testimonials from students who enjoyed their semester abroad without expressing any criticism of the occupation.
In the departments or institutes of Protestant and Catholic Theology, Jewish Studies, History, Archaeology and Philosophy, as well as Music, it is possible to study at one of these universities for a semester abroad within the framework of Erasmus+ funding:
- Bar-Ilan University
- Ben-Gurion University of the Neguev
- Tel Aviv University
- Hebrew University of Jerusalem
- Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance
- Weizmann Institute
Here you can find more information about the respective Israeli universities and their involvement in the displacement, killing, and oppression of Palestinians.
Sign our open letter here!
We demand that the institutes immediately terminate these exchange programmes and partnerships with Israeli universities.
Research projects
The following research projects in which the University of Münster participates together with Israeli universities and companies are all funded by Horizon Europe.
- RESILIENCE PPP (Religious Studies Infrastructure: tooLs, Innovation, Experts, conNections and Centres in Europe Preparatory Phase Project) with the Bar-Ilan-University.
- INCITE (Insect Clock Initial Training Experience) and CISSE (Chiral-Induced in Selectivity Effect) with the Hebrew University
- TReND (Transnational Research Network in Motor Disorder Rehabilitation) with the Tel-Aviv-University.
- INCITE (Insect Clock Initial Training Experience) with the University Haifa
- HEPINIB (Heparanase inhibition as a multifunctional targeting approach in cancer) with Technion
- CISSE (Chiral-Induced in Selectivity Effect) with Weizmann Institute
Additionally, the University of Münster is involved in research projects with these companies, which enable and/or profit from colonial oppression.
BioBee Ltd.
Several BioBee employees participate in the genocide in Gaza as military reservists. On social media, the company has posted slogans such as: “The united people of Israel will prevail.”
On the occasion of International Women’s Day 2025, BioBee congratulated its employee Hagar Cohen, who was serving as a military reservist in Gaza, writing: “Bravo, Hagar, you are amazing.”
Marking the 76th anniversary of the Nakba in 2024, BioBee wrote on social media: “This year, together with all of Israel, we will pray especially to be a free people in our land. We wish you a happy celebration of the miracle of our state and pray for the swift release of all the abductees.”
On the occasion of the 77th anniversary of Israel’s independence, BioBee published the following message:
“BioBee congratulates the people of Israel and the State of Israel on the celebrations marking the 77th anniversary of independence. 77 years of pioneering spirit, renewal and growth, determination, innovation, and faith in our path. At BioBee, we are proud to be part of Israel’s story. A story in which land, people, and vision come together to create groundbreaking achievements. We will continue this story for future generations and for a better and healthier world.”
FreezeM Cryogenics Ltd.
FreezeM Cryogenics Ltd. is an Israeli biotechnology company based in Kibbutz Nachshonim that specializes in the breeding and preservation of insects, particularly the black soldier fly. Until 2018, the company was part of the Weizmann Institute of Science. It receives financial support through the European Union’s Horizon Europe programme.
Thales
Complicity in war crimes
The Thales Group supplies laser target designation systems for combat aircraft to Saudi Arabia (Damocles) and the United Arab Emirates (Shehab), including maintenance services as well as the provision of spare parts and components. These systems have been used by Saudi Arabia and the UAE in Yemen. In 2022, several NGOs filed a criminal complaint against Thales, alleging complicity in war crimes through the supply of weapons to members of the coalition accused of committing potential war crimes in Yemen.
Supplies to Israel
Between 2018 and 2023, Thales supplied electronic components and systems worth at least €2 million for use in armed drones to Israel Aerospace Industries and Elbit Systems.
- Components supplied:
- TSC 4000 IFF transponders (8 ordered, 2 delivered in early 2024, 6 stopped by customs): surveillance, target-tracking, and reconnaissance systems designed to prevent collisions and “friendly fire.”
- Additional UAV components: including communication, navigation, and identification systems.
- Deployment platforms:
- Heron TP and Hermes 900 – Israel’s armed drones.
- Use:
- These systems have been used in the genocide in Gaza for surveillance operations and for targeted as well as broader lethal strikes, including against civilians. In February 2024, a hospital in Khan Younis was directly bombed by a Hermes 900 drone.
Partnerships with complicit companies: Cisco and Dell
The University of Münster uses the Cisco AnyConnect VPN client for students and staff and is supplied by Dell with technical equipment such as computers.
CISCO Systems
Who is Cisco Systems?
Cisco Systems is a US-American telecommunications and networking company that provides a wide range of solutions for network operations and other areas of information technology. Cisco became widely known to the public in 2013 when security researchers uncovered evidence that U.S. intelligence agencies had exploited vulnerabilities and interception methods involving networking equipment from Cisco and other U.S. manufacturers. These revelations were part of broader disclosures showing how „intelligence agencies“ sought to enable extensive surveillance capabilities.
Cisco Systems Complicity
In Israeli Military
Cisco Systems provides the Israeli military (IOF) with its „Cisco Unified Communications system„. This system centralizes the exchange of data, including video and voice communications, between different military units and is intended to improve operational efficiency.
Cisco Systems was also involved in the construction of the Israeli military’s large-scale “David’s Citadel” data center in the Naqab (hebrew: Negev), which became operational in 2019. Located underground, the facility is designed to store and process large volumes of data. Critics argue that data collected through surveillance of the Palestinian population may be stored and analyzed there and could be used in military operations, including mass murders supported by AI and other advanced technologies. Cisco has also supplied technology infrastructure for several technology hubs in the Naqab, projects that critics say were associated with the displacement of local Bedouin communities.
In addition to the technology hubs in the Naqab, 45 similar hubs have been established in Palestine, including in the occupied West Bank and the occupied Golan Heights.
Within the Israeli Police
In 2022, the Israeli police purchased Cisco’s Nituv communications system. Cisco had also supplied technology to the Israeli police in previous years. As part of projects aimed at developing Jerusalem as a “smart city,” Cisco installed communications and surveillance technologies. These systems have been used to the surveillance of Palestinian residents of the city.
What does the Uni of Münster have to do with Cisco Systems?
Since early 2023, the University of Münster has been using the Cisco AnyConnect VPN client developed by Cisco Systems. Students and employees at the university use this VPN client to establish secure VPN connections. These connections are used, for example, to access the online resources of university libraries from home. In addition to the University of Münster, many other universities (University of Cologne, University of Bremen) as well as numerous other organizations use Cisco AnyConnect as their VPN client.
Dell
Who is Dell?
Dell Technologies Inc. is a US-American multinational technology company that provides products and services in the fields of computer hardware, software, cybersecurity, and information technology.
The company is a major supplier of servers, storage systems, and IT services to the Israeli Ministry of Defense and the Israeli military.
Dell Complicity
Israeli Military
- In January 2023, Dell Technologies won a tender from the Israeli Ministry of Defense worth more than US$150 million for the supply of servers, maintenance services, and equipment to the Israeli military. The contract was financed through U.S. foreign aid.
- In July 2024, Dell sponsored and participated in the “IT For IDF” conference, which focused on the use of information and communication technologies in military operational and support systems during the Gaza genocide.
- The Ministry of Defense had previously issued a tender for the purchase of Dell laptops in 2019.
- EMC Israel Advanced Information Technologies
- EMC Israel Advanced Information Technologies, a wholly owned subsidiary of Dell Technologies, is a major provider of data storage systems for the Israeli military. In 2010, EMC won a US$300 million tender, financed through U.S. military aid, to supply storage and backup systems for the military and security agencies. These systems formed the basis of new data centers established as part of the Naqab project, in which Cisco was also involved. Data stored in these facilities may have been used, and may continue to be used, in mass murders supported by artificial intelligence and other advanced systems.
- National Cyber Park and Military Projects in the Naqab
- EMC, a Dell subsidiary, is part of the National Cyber Park in the Naqab, adjacent to the technology campus of the Israeli military’s Information and Communication Technology Division. Dell was also selected for a Ministry of Defense project to help establish a military technology facility as part of the relocation of military infrastructure to southern Israel. The project has also been linked to efforts to expand Jewish settlement in the Naqab, while Palestinian Bedouin communities have faced displacement and oppression.
- Between 2019 and 2024, EMC received more than 22 million NIS in government funding for research and development activities in the Cyber Park.
- In August 2018, Dell participated in a military hackathon for cyber defense and IT units in the Naqab.
What does the Uni of Münster have to do with Dell?
The University of Münster purchases nearly all of its computers from Dell. Work laptops, computers in the libraries, and many other devices are predominantly supplied by the company. This is based on a framework agreement between the university and Dell, which enables the procurement of equipment at more favorable conditions.
Individual boycott of Dell computers?
An individual boycott of Dell computers at the university is only realistic under certain circumstances. In general, only people with a certain degree of institutional autonomy, such as professors, are able to choose their own devices. Students and most other employees, by contrast, are bound by the university’s centralized procurement decisions.
This means that reducing the use of Dell computers would require persuading the University of Münster to discontinue its existing framework agreement with Dell and adopt an alternative procurement solution.
More about High-Tech sector in Israel and the consequences for the Palestinians here