Starting Tuesday, university student unions are embarking on an open-ended strike, demanding the Shochat Committee on reforming higher education rescind its apparent decision to raise tuition fees.

The students also demand that the government increase funding to higher education by more than NIS 1 billion, a sum reflecting the total cuts in recent years.

Education Minister Yuli Tamir said in response that it "is unfortunate that [the students] have violated an agreement which they signed" and called on the students to return to the negotiating table.

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The strike will involve some 250,000 students in all universities, academic colleges (both private and public), teaching colleges and other institutions of higher education.

The strike is backed by national unions of faculty, who vow to assist students to complete any material they will lose as a result of their protest.

Faculty oppose the proposal being considered by the Shochat Committee, as part of the reforms package, to hire some lecturers on individual contracts.

The Shochat Committee opted not to respond to the claims of the faculty and the students.

Itai Shonshein, chairman of the National Students Union, called on Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Monday to "intervene and solve the crisis."

"We expect an urgent meeting with the prime minister," he said.

"In the meantime, there are feelers through associates, but until he meets with us and accepts our demands, we will continue with our [strike] action," Shonshein added.

Shonshein accused the Shochat Committee of intending to recommend that tuition fees be raised, thus "violating a government promise."

"We are calling on the prime minister to regain his composure and take action so that funds will be immediately made available to education in Israel," Shonshein said.

Before the Passover holiday, Avraham Shochat, former finance minister and chair of the committee, said that "raising the tuition fees will be accompanied with a massive aid program."

This program is "necessary for creating financial resources, in addition to the increase in government funding," he said.

The deputy chairman of the committee, Leora Meridor, said that a proposal being considered is to base tuition on the future income of students, depending on their field of study.

"This is a social struggle against an oppressive government," said Ayelet Yohanan, the chairwoman of the student union at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev in Be'er Sheva.