Non-students in pro-Palestinian camps ‘likely to have extended protests’

The presence of “external individuals” in pro-Palestinian encampments on university campuses is likely to have helped the protests last longer, a report has suggested.

Universities could not take disciplinary action against individuals who joined campus encampments – which took place across the UK in spring and summer last year – if they were not students or staff, according to the Higher Education Policy Institute (Hepi) paper.

The camps made many Jewish students “fearful” for their safety and the protests may have encouraged students to engage in antisemitic behaviour, the think tank’s report said.

The Office for Students (OfS), England’s higher education regulator, “missed an opportunity” to help institutions, and the Government put them in an “awkward position” over the topic, it found.

The paper – which is based on interviews with student protesters, senior university leaders, students’ union officers and Jewish students – concluded: “It is very likely that the involvement of external individuals helped encampments continue for longer and campaign more energetically.

“They provided supplies and food, occupied tents overnight so students could return to their accommodation and participated in activities.

“They also boosted morale by giving students the energising sense they were having a positive impact.”

Some students said members of the local community also helped by “adding numbers to encampment-organised protests”.

Students who took part in the protests were motivated by “feelings of anger and powerlessness” about the war in Gaza and they felt genocide was being “live-streamed” to their phones via social media, the report said.

It added: “Students used social media to build support for the cause by making a seemingly distant conflict seem personal for students and staff.

“The most widely shared posts attacked institutions and senior staff directly for their alleged complicity in genocide or mistreatment of protesters.”

But the report – which looked at the encampment protests at 36 universities across the UK last academic year – suggested that students were also motivated to join due to “wider grievances”.

It said: “They felt that institutions were not taking seriously their concerns around Islamophobia, tuition fees, staff pay and pensions, mental health or the freedom to protest.”

The paper said there was a consensus that the OfS “failed to help institutions deal with contested free speech like the ‘river to the sea’ chant”.

It added that some members of encampments engaged in antisemitic behaviour – including writing antisemitic slogans in Arabic.

“The presence of encampments may also have emboldened other students not involved in the protests to engage in antisemitic behaviour,” the report suggested.

If similar protests take place again, the think tank called on universities to take steps to prevent external individuals from joining encampments, and they should establish robust communication with Jewish students and staff.

Josh Freeman, policy manager at Hepi and author of the report, said: “Now a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas has been signed, it is a good time for universities to reflect on this fraught period of student activism.

“Most protests last only a few hours and disappear as quickly as they appear. The encampments were very different.

“From April 2024, they became a semi-permanent feature on many campuses. This allowed the protesters to build a visible, sustained campaign to pressure institutions to take action.”

He added: “The visibility brought its own challenges. Many students and staff were uncomfortable to have to walk past the protests every day.

“Institutions should learn the lessons of the protests. Supporting the free speech of protesters and others was and should be a key priority.

“Another important consideration is supporting student wellbeing, and more should have been done to support vulnerable members of the academic community, including Jewish students and staff and the protesters themselves.”

Researchers carried out interviews with 14 student protesters, 19 university staff, eight students’ union officers, 10 Jewish students and representatives, three other representatives of the Jewish community and two others.

Vivienne Stern, chief executive of Universities UK (UUK), said: “This report illustrates the challenges universities face in balancing their duty to protect and promote free speech, and to allow legitimate protest, with the obligation to ensure the safety of their campuses and the ability of staff and students to go about their work and study.

“They are also obliged by law to prevent hate speech, antisemitism and racism.

“There is much that we can learn from this balanced reflection of the perspectives of many of those who have been involved in the protests over the past year.”

Arif Ahmed, director for freedom of speech and academic freedom at the OfS, said: “Universities and colleges need to take steps to uphold free speech within the law for students, staff and visiting speakers. This includes making provision for peaceful protest.”

He added: “We’re clear that lawful speech does not, and cannot, include discrimination against, or harassment of, Jewish students or staff – or any other conduct prohibited by law.

“In other examples, speech may be offensive or shocking to some but its legality may be highly dependent on the particular facts of the case.

“That is why the OfS cannot offer blanket guidance on, for example, the lawfulness of certain phrases.”

Stella Swain, youth and students campaigns officer at the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), said: “Students set up encampments because they are rightly horrified at the fact that their institutions have links with Israel’s genocidal assault on the Palestinian people in Gaza.”

She added: “Universities must listen to their students and ensure they stand on the right side of history by breaking all ties of complicity with Israel’s ongoing violence, its illegal occupation, and its violations of the rights of the Palestinian people across their homeland.”

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “We welcome this report and encourage institutions to reflect on what can be learned regarding handling protests appropriately and effectively.

“Everyone is entitled to their political opinions and has the right to campaign on issues, but any action must be conducted lawfully.”