UK may cancel visas for "Hamas supporters"

October 26, 2023
International students who praise Hamas could have their UK visas revoked under plans put forward by the Home Office. American politicians also called on the government to expel foreigners who support Hamas. British newspaper The Telegraph reports that Home Office officials are studying how to expel students for security reasons when there is evidence that an individual supports Hamas. Under current UK law, the Home Secretary can revoke the visa of anyone who expresses views that justify or glorify terrorist violence. Speaking at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday, Rishi Sunak answered questions on the issue. “The increase in incidents we’ve seen over the past week is utterly sickening and this government will do whatever it takes to keep our Jewish community safe,” Sunak said. “Under our existing immigration rules we do have the power to cancel a person’s presence in the UK if it is not conducive to the public good. “We will not tolerate this hatred, not in our country, not in this century.” On October 11, vice-chancellors received letters from education ministers Gillian Keegan and Robert Halfon imploring them to take "swift and decisive" action in response to threats to the safety of Jewish students. “We have seen evidence of a number of student societies that support Palestinians sending out inflammatory messages that show support for Hamas,” they wrote. “The effects of these are already being felt by Jewish students, many of whom are being made to feel that they need to hide their Jewish identity.” A number of student members of Palestinian associations at British universities have been reported to the police for allegedly supporting Hamas and the Home Office is said to be investigating specific cases. SOAS University of London has suspended several students after attending a pro-Palestinian demonstration.. The university's Palestinian Students Association said members who were not present at the protest had also received formal disciplinary warnings from the university. In a statement, the students said this was a "targeted act of political repression". SOAS did not respond to a request for comment.