University leaders have warned students planning to participate in pro-Palestinian demonstrations marking the second anniversary of the 7 October Hamas attacks that expressing support for a terrorist organisation is a criminal offence. Up to ten events, including vigils, rallies and debates, are scheduled on or near campuses on Tuesday, with an inter-university march planned in London involving students and staff from several institutions.
Universities UK (UUK), representing vice-chancellors, issued the warning after the attack on Heaton Park synagogue in Manchester, describing the anniversary as a “potential flashpoint” and urging members to review security arrangements. UUK chief executive Vivienne Stern said: “While universities must be places where contentious views can be expressed, and while universities have a legal duty to uphold free speech, we urge students and staff participating in protests to remember that 7 October is the anniversary of an atrocious attack on innocent people, and that expressing support for a terrorist organisation is a criminal offence.”
The London march, advertised on Instagram under the banner “Inter-university march. Two years of genocide and our institutions remain complicit,” calls for a walkout at 2pm and will pass King’s College London, the London School of Economics, University College London and finish at SOAS. Other events include a “rally for Palestine” at the University of Sheffield by the Revolutionary Communist party and a “Protest 4 Palestine” at Strathclyde University by the Palestine Solidarity Society, while KCL Students for Justice for Palestine hosts a debate titled “Why it didn’t start on October 7th”.
Stern noted a “deeply concerning” rise in antisemitic incidents over the past two years and urged university leaders to maintain close contact with Jewish student groups and publicise reporting mechanisms. Louis Danker, president of the Union of Jewish Students, said: “We respect the right to protest and the importance of free speech within the law. There are 365 days in the year and on one of them – 7 October – Jewish students seek the space to mourn their loved ones murdered in southern Israel.” He added that marking “two years of resistance” on 7 October glorifies the Hamas attacks.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer, writing in the Times, urged students not to take part in what he called “un-British” protests, stating: “People on our streets calling for the murder of Jewish people… A total loss of empathy and humanity… And today, on the anniversary of the atrocities of 7 October, students are once again planning protests. This is not who we are as a country.”
