Oxford and Cambridge students set up pro-Palestinian camps outside university buildings
Oxford and Cambridge university students have set up pro-Palestinian encampments on campus lawns.
They were started outside King’s College in Cambridge and the Pitt Rivers Museum in Oxford.
The “liberated zone encampment” at Oxford University consists of tents erected on sodden ground, with dozens of protestors slushing through mud for teachings on Palestine and “well being circles”, Sky News correspondent Shamaan Freeman-Powell, who is at the scene, reports.
Kendall Gardner said protesters were ‘keeping things peaceful’
“Come rain or shine, we will free Palestine” they chant.
There’s a food tent serving hot meals, a medical site for emergencies and workshops for arts and crafts.
Kendall Gardner, a Jewish student at the university, told Sky News she was “really inspired by the events that have been happening across the world”.
“The US started a global chain of student activism for Palestine,” she said.
“We have six demands for this protest – the top line is to demand closure of all university-wide financial assets that benefit Israel.
“We will stay here until those demands are met. I brought a big bag, I have everything a girl could need.”
According to the Oxford for Palestine organisation, the demands include the following: disclose university-wide assets, divest university-wide assets, overhaul investment policy, boycott institutional relationships, drop Barclays bank and rebuild and reinvest.
Oxford University said it respected students’ ‘right to freedom of expression’
Ms Gardner said protesters had “every intention of keeping things peaceful”.
“I am actually Jewish and I have never felt safer on campus than I have with this community of people,” she said.
“The last few months have been really hard for me personally. I am horrified of what is being done in my name and it has been so comforting for my community members – most of who are Arab, Muslim and Palestinian – to say my culture has nothing to do with what has been going on in Gaza.”
An Oxford University spokesperson said: “We are aware of the ongoing demonstration by members of our university community.
“We respect our students and staff members right to freedom of expression in the form of peaceful protests. We ask everyone who is taking part to do so with respect, courtesy and empathy.
“Oxford University’s primary focus is the health and safety of the university community, and to ensure any impact on work, research and learning, including student exams, is minimised. As we have stressed in our student and staff communications there is no place for intolerance at the University of Oxford.”
The university added that the Museum of Natural History and the Pitt Rivers Museum remained open.
Many students across the UK have started to gather in protest against the war in Gaza, with encampments set up in cities including Manchester, Newcastle, Bristol and Leeds.
A pro-Palestinian encampment at the University of Bristol. Pic: AP
As well as the encampment which started on Monday, pro-Palestinian students had already disrupted open days at the University of Cambridge in recent days.
Demonstrators told prospective undergraduates and their families they would be “complicit in Israel’s genocide” in Gaza if they applied to Trinity College.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has denied his country is committing genocide, saying the case brought to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) earlier this year was “outrageous”.
He also vowed to continue the military action that began after the Hamas attack on 7 October.
“We will continue to do what is necessary to defend our country and defend our people,” Mr Netanyahu said after an ICJ ruling compelling Israel to take all measures within its power to prevent genocide.
“Like every country, Israel has an inherent right to defend itself.”
In response to Monday’s demonstrations, the University of Cambridge said it was “fully committed to academic freedom and freedom of speech within the law” and said it acknowledged the “right to protest”.
“We ask everyone in our community to treat each other with understanding and empathy,” it said. “Our priority is the safety of all staff and students.
“We will not tolerate antisemitism, Islamophobia and any other form of racial or religious hatred, or other unlawful activity.”
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The wave of university protests in the UK follows a series of violent clashes at campuses across the US, most prominently at Columbia University in New York.
Protest groups in the UK have called on their universities to divest from Israel in response to its military operation in Gaza.
This would mean selling off stock in Israeli companies or otherwise dropping financial ties.
Encampments have also been set up in recent days in France, Ireland and Finland.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir Starmer to sack Treasury minister Tulip Siddiq over allegations she lived in properties linked to allies of her aunt, Sheikh Hasina, the deposed prime minister of Bangladesh.
It comes after the current Bangladeshi leader, Muhammad Yunus, said London properties used by Ms Siddiq should be investigated.
He told the Sunday Times the properties should be handed back to his government if they were acquired through “plain robbery”.
Tory leader Ms Badenoch said: “It’s time for Keir Starmer to sack Tulip Siddiq.
“He appointed his personal friend as anti-corruption minister and she is accused herself of corruption.
“Now the government of Bangladesh is raising serious concerns about her links to the regime of Sheikh Hasina.”
Ms Siddiq insists she has “done nothing wrong”.
Her aunt was ousted from office in August following an uprising against her 20-year leadership and fled to India.
Ms Siddiq is also named with her aunt in Bangladesh court documents about meetings with the Russian government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has called on Sir Keir to sack the minister
Read more from Sky News:
Ten Reform councillors quit in protest
Liz Truss sends cease and desist letter to Starmer
As economic secretary to the Treasury, Ms Siddiq is responsible for policy on both the City and tackling corruption.
She referred herself to the prime minister’s ethics watchdog on Monday following the reports about the properties.
On the same day, the prime minister said: “Tulip Siddiq has acted entirely properly by referring herself to the independent adviser, as she’s now done, and that’s why we brought into being the new code.
“It’s to allow ministers to ask the adviser to establish the facts, and yes, I’ve got confidence in her, and that’s the process that will now be happening.”
Police in Aberdeen have widened the search area for two sisters who disappeared four days ago in the city.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV on Market Street after leaving their home on Tuesday at around 2.12am.
The sisters – who are part of a set of triplets and originally from Hungary – crossed the Victoria Bridge to the Torry area and turned right on to a footpath next to the River Dee.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti were last seen on CCTV in Market Street. Pic: Police Scotland/PA
They headed in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club but officers said there is no evidence to suggest the missing women left the immediate area.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and a marine unit have been trying to trace the pair.
The sisters crossed Victoria Bridge before walking along a footpath next to the River Dee
The pair were heading in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club on the south side of the River Dee
Further searches are being carried out towards the Port of Aberdeen’s South Harbour and Duthie Park.
Police Scotland said it is liaising with authorities in Hungary to support the relatives of the two sisters.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Eliza and Henrietta’s family are understandably extremely worried about them and we are working tirelessly to find them.
“We are seriously concerned about them and have significant resources dedicated to the inquiry.”
The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Officers have requested businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review their CCTV footage for the early morning of Tuesday 7 January.
Police added they are keen to hear from anyone with dashcam footage from that time.
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