The administration of Sciences Po Paris used extensive surveillance methods against students involved in pro-Palestine demonstrations, according to an investigation published by French outlet Mediapart.
Citing internal disciplinary files, Mediapart reported that students were monitored on social media, photographed without their knowledge and observed during campus gatherings to gather evidence for disciplinary proceedings.
Since 2024, at least 48 students have been subjected to disciplinary investigations, while 13 were temporarily barred from entering the university pending disciplinary decisions. Most of the suspensions were later lifted, though at least two remained in force, the report said.
Surveillance allegations
Mediapart identified Pierre Catalan, the university's then-director of student life, as a central figure in the alleged monitoring operation.
Students accused Catalan of collecting detailed information on members of the Palestine Committee, helping identify participants in campus blockades and creating a fake social media account under a pseudonym to monitor activists.
According to the report, Sciences Po's ethics committee concluded in 2024 that the practice fell outside Catalan's official duties and risked creating an "intimidating" environment. Catalan acknowledged making an "error," but no disciplinary action was taken against him.
The investigation also alleged that photographs taken from students' Instagram accounts and information from academic records were used in disciplinary cases.
One student said he was wrongly accused because his shoes resembled those seen in social media images. Mediapart said another student later admitted responsibility for the incident.
Undercover footage used
The report also said footage secretly recorded by a journalist from Israeli public broadcaster KAN during a student assembly in September 2025 was included in the disciplinary file of at least one suspended student. The journalist said the university had not been informed about the undercover filming.
Sciences Po declined to respond to the substance of the allegations when contacted by Mediapart, but expressed support for Catalan and criticised what it described as "personal attacks" against him.
Students and their lawyers said the measures reflected a broader crackdown on pro-Palestine activism. Several disciplinary and legal proceedings remain ongoing.
