The Syrian-German Osman is in the Netherlands for a series of three lectures on how she went from being an anti-Semite to becoming a Zionist, all under the banner of the pro-Israel organization Stand With Us. Since the Hamas attack in late 2023, she has been speaking out for Israel.
In Maastricht, about thirty students responded to a call from Maastricht Encampment (the group that occupied the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences last year) to protest what they see as “promoting Zionism.” In videos shared online by both supporters and opponents, activists can be seen banging on the windows of Building Z and chanting slogans such as "Say it loud, say it clear, we don’t want no Zionists here". Osman tries to speak over the noise, telling the audience that "Palestine does not exist" and that "Israel is not the perpetrator".
Some protesters were inside the lecture hall, chanting "Free Palestine," among other things. After being repeatedly asked not to disrupt the event, they were asked to leave the room—most did so voluntarily, while one was escorted out by the police.