Sciences Po Paris faces allegations of surveillance targeting pro-Palestine students

The administration of French university Sciences Po Paris reportedly used unprecedented surveillance methods against students involved in pro-Palestine demonstrations, according to local investigative outlet Mediapart.

Citing several internal disciplinary files, Mediapart said on Monday that students were monitored on social media, photographed without their knowledge, and observed during gatherings to collect evidence for disciplinary proceedings.

Since 2024, at least 48 students have reportedly been subjected to disciplinary investigations, while 13 were temporarily banned from entering the university’s premises pending decisions by its disciplinary body.

Most of the temporary suspensions were later lifted, though at least two remained in effect, the report said.

The investigation identified Pierre Catalan, then-director of student life at the university, as a central figure in the alleged monitoring operation.

Students interviewed by Mediapart accused Catalan of collecting detailed information about members of the Palestine Committee and helping identify participants during campus blockades.

The report also alleged that Catalan created a fake social media account under a pseudonym to monitor student activists.

Sciences Po’s ethics committee, which examined the matter in 2024, reportedly concluded that the practice fell outside his official duties and risked creating an “intimidating” environment. Catalan acknowledged making an “error,” but no action was taken affecting his position, according to Mediapart.

Photographs taken from students’ Instagram accounts and information from their academic records were also allegedly used in disciplinary files.

One student said he was wrongly accused based on the similarity between his shoes and those visible in social media posts. Another student later admitted responsibility for the act in question, the report added.

Footage secretly recorded by a journalist from Israeli public broadcaster Kan News during a student assembly in September 2025 was also reportedly included in the disciplinary file of at least one suspended student.

The journalist said the university had not been informed in advance about the undercover filming.

Sciences Po declined to address the substance of the allegations when contacted by Mediapart but expressed support for Catalan and criticized what it described as “personal attacks” against him.

The students and their lawyers denounced what they described as a broader climate of repression against pro-Palestine activism. Several disciplinary and legal proceedings remain underway.