Universities warn Starmer: Evacuate Gaza scholarship students now or they will lose their place
Universities set deadline for evacuation of Gaza students
- Leaders from seven top UK universities have warned Sir Keir Starmer that Palestinian students with scholarships will lose their places if not evacuated from Gaza by Sunday.
- Students from universities including Cambridge, Oxford, and UCL risk losing fully funded spots if they are not on evacuation lists for 22 or 26 October.
- University heads also criticised a ban preventing Palestinian students from bringing dependents to the UK, urging ministers to use discretion to avoid separating families.
- This policy forces students, such as one with a three-month-old daughter, to choose between their education and leaving their children in a dangerous region.
- Religious leaders, including 35 rabbis and bishops, have backed the call, stating that "compassion cannot be blocked by bureaucracy" and urging the government to ensure all parent scholars can evacuate with their children.