Institutions of higher education have long been perceived as bastions of critical thinking and rigorous debate. Yet recent incidents throughout the United Kingdom suggest that some educators may be exploiting their platforms to rationalize or at least minimize acts of terror.
From the distribution of Hamas propaganda to publicly endorsing or defending the violence committed by Hamas against Israeli civilians, the line between intellectual freedom and terrorist apologism has blurred. For Jewish and Israeli students these developments have fostered an environment of unease, fear and isolation on campuses that should be a refuge for open discourse.
One of the most striking examples occurred when a lecturer at King’s College London handed out a Hamas propaganda document earlier this year titled “Our Narrative: Operation Al-Aqsa Flood.” Recordings provided by concerned students indicate that the material depicted Hamas primarily as a “national liberation” movement, glossing over its status as a recognized terrorist organization in the United Kingdom.
In the same seminar, students recall being led through a series of readings on the 1948 Arab-Israeli war that, in their view, set them up to sympathize with Hamas’s narrative. One Jewish student said that to earn high marks, it was almost mandatory to adopt an anti-Israel stance. While King’s College London stated it had investigated and “concluded” the matter, the specifics of any outcome remain undisclosed, leaving students worried that those responsible may never be held accountable.
This is not an isolated phenomenon. A report by the Times revealed that several British academics, including those at Oxbridge (which includes the universities of Cambridge and Oxford) and top-tier Russell Group institutions (which include the London School of Economics and Political Science and the University of Manchester, among others), had posted comments on social media justifying the Hamas-led terrorist attacks in Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Some even mocked the young adults murdered at the Nova festival, framing their presence in “occupied” or “stolen” land as a legitimate target for violence. Others questioned why flying armed militants into a concert by paraglider should be labeled “terrorism,” suggesting these acts could be considered “self-defense” instead. Such rhetoric weaponizes “academic freedom” to champion extremism and sow further division on campuses.
This pattern of behavior becomes more apparent when considering the results of a recent survey by StandWithUs UK that found that nearly 40% of students at Russell Group universities believe that the atrocities against civilians, including children and entire families, on Oct. 7 were an “understandable act of resistance.” Equally concerning, only around one-third of students polled considered Hamas’s mass killings of Israeli civilians to be “terrorist attacks.”
In the aftermath of Oct. 7, there has also been a surge in antisemitic incidents with the Union of Jewish Students in the United Kingdom receiving more than 700 calls from frightened students in just the first six months following the attack. Against this background, Israeli students on multiple campuses have voiced fears of being singled out or harassed, leading many to hide identifiable religious symbols such as kippahs or Star of David necklaces.
In Cambridge, demonstrators pitched tents on the school senate house lawn to protest Israel’s actions in Gaza, ultimately forcing university officials to relocate graduation ceremonies at the last minute. Similar pro-Palestinian “encampments” sprang up across other universities in the United Kingdom, with some protesters chanting “Intifada!” and “Resistance is justified if a people are occupied.” For Jewish students, these slogans feel like endorsements of violence, especially so soon after the events of Oct. 7. One professor at a relocated ceremony called the protests “disrespectful,” lamenting that a graduation ceremony had become overshadowed by division and fear.
Universities, for their part, generally emphasized the importance of “academic freedom” and “freedom of expression within the law.” The London School of Economics, for instance, said it does not “police or control” the social-media activity of its faculty, although it expects respectful dialogue. Yet critics argue that these institutions are often reluctant to draw a firm line when staff or students appear to celebrate, justify or trivialize terror. As a result, Jewish students and others who speak out for Israel can feel increasingly isolated and attacked, online and in person, and uncertain whether their schools will offer support.
The controversy ultimately points to a more profound moral and educational crisis. If the goal of higher education is to foster critical thought, then how can universities tolerate teaching methods and public statements that all but condone attacks on civilians?
While genuine debate over the Israel-Palestine conflict belongs in academia, endorsing the slaughter of noncombatants under the banner of “resistance” crosses a moral line. As these institutions grapple with balancing freedom of speech against the safety and well-being of Jewish students, they stand at a crossroads. Universities can either become breeding grounds for extremist apologism or recommit themselves to upholding robust, fact-based debate—one that neither glorifies terrorism nor stigmatizes those who oppose it.
This article was originally published in The Jewish News Syndicate.
