Tel Aviv University Restricts Freedom of Expression
- ACRI
- Jan 11
- 1 min read
On January 12, 2026, we appealed to the President of Tel Aviv University following a new policy published by the university to regulate public activity on campus. The policy includes significant restrictions on freedom of expression, protest, and association on campus, that include requiring protests to take place off campus, police approval for every cultural event, prohibiting groups from inviting external speakers to events, forbidding distributing flyers, and more. This is a notable deviation from the accepted norms on Israeli campuses, and do not appear in the bylaws of any of the leading universities in Israel.
In the appeal, Attorney Eden Gilad, ACRI’s Freedom of Protest Coordinator, argues that the new policies were established without authority, since restrictions that harm constitutional rights can only be established in the university's bylaws. But even if the university were to establish these policies in the bylaws they still would not be valid, since the Supreme Court has ruled repeatedly that institutions of higher education must respect and protect students' freedom of expression and assembly. The appeal requests that the university reverse the implementation of the new policies and refrain from continuing to harm the freedom of expression, protest, and association.
ACRI's appeal, January 12, 2026 (Heb)
