Banksy is believed to have taken his message on migration to Paris, which has seen seven works attributed to the provocative British street artist.
The works attributed to Banksy have been discovered in recent days, including one near a former center for migrants at the city's northern edge that depicts a child spray-painting wallpaper over a swastika.
A migrant is seen sitting next to a graffiti believed to be attributed to street artist Banksy, in Paris, Monday, June 25, 2018. Seven works attributed to the graffiti artist have been discovered in recent days, including one near a former center for migrants at the city's northern edge, according to the art website Artistikrezo. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
Nicolas Laugero Lasserre, editor of the Artistikrezo website that broke the story, said he heard a few weeks ago through contacts in the French street art world that Banksy was planning a trip.
He said he started looking for the works and came across the one in the northern Porte de la Chappelle neighborhood. The same wallpaper stencil was used in a 2009 exposition at the Bristol Museum, he said, describing it as "a real signature" of the elusive artist.
A graffiti believed to be attributed to street artist Banksy is seen on the wall by a group of migrants, in Paris, Monday, June 25, 2018. Seven works attributed to the graffiti artist have been discovered in recent days, including one near a former center for migrants at the city's northern edge, according to the art website Artistikrezo. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
It didn't take long for others to add — or detract — from Banksy's work. First came the blue tag over the wallpaper. Then on Monday, another artist temporarily covered over Banksy's work with a poster depicting a woman's face, but the paper was quickly pulled off and an art restorer frantically tried to cover the works with a clear plastic.
Not all the works directly reference migration. One is a play on the 1801 painting of Napoleon crossing the Alps. Others show rats, including one that appeared to have been altered over the weekend.
A migrant takes a picture of a graffiti believed to be attributed to street artist Banksy, in Paris, Monday, June 25, 2018. Seven works attributed to the graffiti artist have been discovered in recent days, including one near a former center for migrants at the city's northern edge, according to the art website Artistikrezo. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
"It lands at a key political moment, and for me that's really the genius of Banksy," Laugero Lasserre said.
Banksy's publicist did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
A woman walks past a graffiti attributed to street artist Banksy, in Paris, Monday, June 25, 2018. The provocative street artist Banksy is believed to have taken his message on migration to Paris. Seven works attributed to the graffiti artist have been discovered in recent days, including one near a former center for migrants at the city's northern edge, according to the art website Artistikrezo. (AP Photo/Thibault Camus)
PARIS (AP) — Students in Paris inspired by Gaza solidarity encampments at campuses in the United States peacefully evacuated a campus building at a prestigious French university late on Friday after days of tensions.
The head of the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, said an agreement was found Friday with students. Sciences Po counts President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Gabriel Attal among its many famous alumni.
Tensions had break out on the campus as pro-Palestinian students sought to occupy an amphitheater earlier this week.
On Friday, pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli demonstrators faced each other in a tense standoff in the street outside the school. Riot police stepped in to separate the opposing groups.
Students later agreed to leave the site.
Pro-Palestinian protester and Sciences Po student Wajih, who declined to give his last name for fear of disciplinary sanctions by the university, said “the occupation has paused for now. But we'll still support the Palestinian movement at large, we’ll support other universities, we’ll support all over the globe until Palestine is free.”
In an email to students, Sciences Po administrator Jean Bassères pledged Friday to hold a townhall meeting in the coming week and to suspend some disciplinary proceedings against students. In return, students “committed to no longer disrupting courses, examinations and all other activities of the institution,” the email said.
The university administration closed all university buildings and moved classes online Friday.
The Gaza war is sharply divisive in France, which has the largest populations of Muslims and Jews in western Europe. France initially sought to ban pro-Palestinian demonstrations after Hamas’ surprise Oct. 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war. Antisemitism has surged.
Students blocking Sciences-Po university display Palestinian flags, in Paris Friday, April 26, 2024. Students in Paris inspired by Gaza solidarity encampments at campuses in the United States blocked access to a campus building at a prestigious French university Friday, prompting administrators to move all classes online. The pro-Palestinian protest at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, came two days after police broke up a separate demonstration at one of the university's amphitheaters. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A student wave a palestinian flag outside Sciences-Po university in Paris Friday, April 26, 2024. Students in Paris inspired by Gaza solidarity encampments at campuses in the United States blocked access to a campus building at a prestigious French university Friday, prompting administrators to move all classes online. The pro-Palestinian protest at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, came two days after police broke up a separate demonstration at one of the university's amphitheaters. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
A student walks past th entrance of Sciences-Po university in Paris Friday, April 26, 2024. Students in Paris inspired by Gaza solidarity encampments at campuses in the United States blocked access to a campus building at a prestigious French university Friday, prompting administrators to move all classes online. The pro-Palestinian protest at the Paris Institute of Political Studies, known as Sciences Po, came two days after police broke up a separate demonstration at one of the university's amphitheaters. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
