Shiite students performing prayers on Antonine University campus cause hubbub

A number of Shiite students at the Antonine University in Baabda have been trying to perform their prayers on campus for months. However, the administration asked them repeatedly to refrain from doing so given that the university’s regulations do not permit it.        

According to a statement issued by the General Secretariat of Antonine Fathers, when the university refused their request, 37 students broke into the university campus and performed prayers in the inner courtyard on Monday. They bowed, kneeled, and prostrated on the ground in front of the administration’s entrance and the university’s church in a challenging and provoking way.        

The statement read that the university’s administration does not accept to negotiate over the construction of a worship place for other religions in any of its institutions. The administration warned against such acts of provocation, calling on its students of all religions to adapt to its original identity.        

The administration sent an SMS to all students informing them that a group of students breached the university’s regulations and that they were subjected to punitive measures imposed by the university. The SMS added that any recurrence of such act or any reaction to it will expose violators to definitive expulsion.      
On another note, the university’s Change and Reform bloc students issued a statement in which they kindly asked their Muslim fellows to understand the privacy and Christian entity of their university and respect its decisions. On the other hand, Lebanese Forces students said that these students voluntarily chose to register at a Christian university, thus they must respect its regulations.