In July, as Israel and Hamas fired rockets into and from Gaza, the University of Massachusetts evacuated six students and one faculty member from a program there.
Now it has suspended student participation in all Education Abroad programs in Israel for the Fall 2014 semester.
Jack Ahern, ΓÇ¿vice provost for International Programs, said they evacuated the students this summer because "of concerns about escalating hostilities."
The university evacuated students during the uprising in Egypt in 2011 as well as after the 2011 earthquake in Japan.
The University of Massachusetts International Risk Management Committee meets monthly to assess risk, he said, but lately has been meeting more often.
According to a news office release, the committee "considered input and information from multiple sources, including insurance and risk management consultants and the U.S. Department of State, which recommends the deferral of any non-essential travel. The committee also considered the recent evacuation of UMass Amherst students and faculty from Israel."
Read more at Mass Live: http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2014/08/as_war_wages_in_the_gaza_umass.html