Firearms and ammunition have been seized from the home of an Oxford University student arrested for leading an antisemitic chant at a pro-Palestine protest, police have confirmed. Sam Williams, a 20-year-old Politics, Philosophy and Economics student at Balliol College, was detained on suspicion of inciting racial hatred after a video showed him shouting: 'Gaza, Gaza make us proud, put the Zios in the ground.'
Officers raided the student’s residence in a cul-de-sac in Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, and were seen carrying clear plastic bags containing shotgun cartridges, rifles and shotguns, according to reports. A neighbour expressed concern, stating: 'It's a bit worrying there were shotguns and ammunition in the house. They may be legally owned, but we didn't know they went hunting.'
The Metropolitan Police said that Williams was arrested at an address in Oxfordshire on Wednesday, October 15, and remains in custody. The force added that the arrest followed an investigation into chants filmed at a Palestine Coalition Demonstration in central London on Saturday, October 11.
Oxford University confirmed that Williams had been suspended shortly after his arrest. A university spokesperson said: 'While the university cannot comment on individual student cases, it has the power to take immediate and proportionate action including, as appropriate, suspending a student from membership of the university. Oxford University is unequivocal: there is no place for hatred, anti-semitism or discrimination within our community.'
At the protest, Williams also held a banner reading: 'Oxford University pick a side, justice or genocide.' The term 'Zio' used in the chant is considered a derogatory term for Zionists and Jewish people.
