Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) suspended all academic and administrative activities on April 7 in solidarity with the global "No Work, No School" initiative, protesting the ongoing Israeli military aggression in Gaza.

The shutdown was officially declared in a notice signed by the university's deputy registrar, stating that the move was a mark of protest against the "brutal occupation and genocide" being carried out by Israeli forces in Palestinian territory.

Around noon, hundreds of SUST teachers, students, officers, and staff gathered in front of the university's central library and brought out a protest rally. Waving Palestinian flags and holding banners reading "We stand in solidarity with the people of Gaza against Israeli oppression", the demonstrators marched through key roads of the campus before converging at the Golchattar for a protest gathering.

Speakers at the rally described the atrocities committed by Israeli forces as "genocidal" and condemned the global silence, especially that of the Arab world. They called on the international community to take decisive steps to stop the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.

The protest rally was part of a broader student-led campaign on campus. On April 5, general students of the university had already announced a boycott of classes and exams to protest the escalating violence in Palestine. Students have since welcomed the university administration's decision, calling it a "humane and timely stance".

The event at SUST aligns with the global call for justice and an end to the conflict in Gaza under the "Global Strike for Gaza" movement.

Nazifa Nawar Eshika is a campus ambassador for The Daily Star and a student of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST).