“Dude, what are those guys arguing about?” said first-year law student Sean Nagel as several students gathered together and passionately debated the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in the middle of the George Sherman Union Link Tuesday. An attendant tapped them on the shoulder and the students shuffled to the side to continue their discussion without pause.

The totally spontaneous debate was the result of Palestine Awareness Week at Boston University, and this year tensions are particularly high after Israeli forces killed Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, the spiritual leader of anti-Israel militant group Hamas, as he was pushed in his wheelchair outside his local mosque on Monday. Thursday, a 14-year-old Palestinian boy was intercepted with explosives strapped to his chest, ready to kill Israeli troops at a boarder crossing.

The Palestinian students’ table in the GSU Link is partially hidden behind a huge black wall that the club built to symbolize the wall Israel is building to separate the country from the Palestinian territories. Some students have stood nearly 15 feet away in order to contemplate the pictures and information the group has posted on the structure. One picture depicts a young boy throwing a rock at an Israeli tank.

“The Palestinian side is not represented well in the media,” said College of Communication senior and Arab Students Association President Dana Kadrie. “We have to bring awareness about who the Palestinians are and what violations they’ve suffered.”

“Many do not even know the fundamentals of what is going on,” said Boston Coalition for Palestinian Rights member Sherif Fam. “Israel uses the war on terrorism as a pretext.”

Some students surrounding the wall were more critical.

“I study international relations, and the Palestinian display is inaccurate, but I think Israel should obey the [United Nations],” said College of General Studies sophomore Eric Miller.

Minutes later, Miller entered into long debate with College of Arts and Sciences senior Ahmed Mahmood on the issue.

Despite the argument, Mahmood said he welcomes the opportunity to talk with students, even those with differing opinions.

“Plenty of people are interested in an alternative view, so they are free to make up their own minds,” he said.

Near the large black wall, another table boasts a modest display of informational pamphlets and posters of Israeli youths involved in humanitarian efforts, behind which on Tuesday stood College of Arts and Sciences sophomore and Chloe Markowitz, vice president of Boston University Students for Israel.

“We want to portray a positive pro-Israel message and to eradicate common misconceptions,” Markowitz said. “We are a political as well as cultural group that is non-partisan. We support Israel because it is pro-peace, an emblem of democracy and one of United States’ greatest allies.”

Nearby, first-year law student Mitch Stoltz listened to the discussion and said the Palestinian group’s display was excessive.

“I support the work of BU Students for Israel,” he said. “The Palestinian exhibit tends to use emotionally loaded pictures and is biased.”

While walking through the GSU Link, first-year law student Milan Laufik said the display has caused a stir among BU students.

“I didn’t notice the exhibits at first, but I overheard others then I saw that huge sign and thought something must be going on here,” Laufik said.

Markowitz said Israel is the only democracy in the region.

“I believe in a participatory democracy, and democracy works best when people stand up for what they believe in,” she said.

Fam said the conflict “is in fact a moral issue and one that should concern all of us.”

Despite the groups’ divergent viewpoints, Kadrie said, “it’s been pretty civil. We respect each other’s opinion.”

Fam, while an advocate for the Palestinian people, said there is a fundamental issue that binds both groups.

“We can be for both sides when we believe that people have rights everywhere and ultimately no man is free unless he is willing to grant the same rights to others,” he said.