UK civil society groups slam call to refer pro-Palestine students to police

"From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" is a popular chant heard at pro-Palestine demonstrations. (File/AFP)
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Updated 11 February 2022
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UK civil society groups slam call to refer pro-Palestine students to police

  • Education secretary’s suggestion relates to popular chant ‘from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’
  • National Union of Students: This demonstrates govt’s ‘disregard for human rights’

LONDON: Various civil society organizations have decried a call by the UK’s education secretary for students who repeat a popular pro-Palestine chant to be referred to the police.

Nadhim Zahawi was referring to the chant “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” and equated it with support for Hamas.

Asked whether universities should investigate students who join in this chant, he told the Jewish Chronicle: “Absolutely. This is a proscribed organization. And I think any proscribed organization should be reported to the police and authorities.” 

But a number of groups have hit back at that idea. In a joint statement, the National Union of Students, the University and College Union, and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign said Zahawi’s comments “are part of the wider crackdown on civil liberties being waged by this government.”

The chant “is one widely used by Palestinians and those protesting in solidarity with their struggle for justice,” and Zahawi’s portrayal of it is “incorrect,” they added.

“These comments should deeply alarm not only all those concerned with the struggle of the Palestinian people for freedom, justice, and equality, but anyone who wishes to preserve democratic freedoms from authoritarian encroachment.”

According to the PSC, students have long played a role in dismantling racist apartheid systems — as the situation in Palestine was recently labeled by Amnesty International — and this could be why the government is keen to shut them down.

“Students were central to creating a climate in the UK in which South African apartheid was untenable,” Stella Swain, PSC youth and students officer told Arab News.

“Since 2011, the government has actively pursued the atomization of students and their campaigns, but the attempt to make Palestine a niche issue has failed,” she said.

“Palestinian flags are seen at every student demonstration, from UCU strikes to decolonization rallies, because students understand Palestinian liberation as central to the liberation of oppressed peoples across the world.”

Larissa Kennedy, NUS national president, said: “To say that when students chant in support of the liberation of Palestinians who live under military occupation they should be reported to the police is a further demonstration of this government’s authoritarian intentions and their disregard for human rights.

“Palestinians have made clear that this chant speaks to the reality of living under a system of apartheid which denies basic rights.”

She added: “It is unconscionable that the secretary of state would suggest otherwise — Zahawi must withdraw his remarks.”


Indonesian pilgrims embark on Hajj journey under Makkah Route expansion

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Indonesian pilgrims embark on Hajj journey under Makkah Route expansion

  • Saudi Arabia’s Makkah Route initiative is facilitating travel for pilgrims in Jakarta, Surabaya and Solo
  • Over 125,000 Indonesian Hajj pilgrims have already arrived in the Kingdom as of Tuesday

JAKARTA: More than 120,000 Indonesian pilgrims are benefiting from the Makkah Route initiative this year, as they embark on Hajj after the flagship Saudi program was expanded to three cities across the country.

Indonesia, the world’s biggest Muslim-majority nation, sends the largest Hajj contingent of pilgrims every year to perform the spiritual journey that is one of the five pillars of Islam.

In 2025, Saudi Arabia granted Indonesia a quota of 221,000 pilgrims. With the Hajj expected to take place on June 4 and end on June 9, special pilgrimage flights from Indonesia started on May 2.

Over half of the pilgrims are departing under the pre-travel program, which was launched by the Kingdom in 2019 to help pilgrims meet all the visa, customs and health requirements at their airport of origin and save them long hours of waiting before and upon arrival in the Kingdom.

“In Indonesia, Makkah Route is implemented in three airports, Soekarno-Hatta in Jakarta, and then in the cities of Solo and Surabaya,” Mohammed Zain, director of domestic Hajj services at the Ministry of Religious Affairs, told Arab News.

The initiative was only expanded in 2024 to reach more Indonesian pilgrims in different parts of the country.

This year, a total of 122,156 Indonesian pilgrims, who are departing from the three selected cities, are benefiting from the program.

“This is very helpful in sorting all of the pilgrims’ document requirements, like visa and passport, so that when the pilgrims reach Saudi Arabia, they simply head to their buses and go on their spiritual journey safely and comfortably,” Zain said.

“We hope that for Hajj next year, the Makkah Route initiative will be further expanded in Indonesia, so that we can offer more high-quality Hajj service.”

In Jakarta, the program is implemented at the new Hajj and Umrah terminal in Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, which was inaugurated by President Prabowo Subianto earlier this month.

Over 125,000 pilgrims have arrived in the Kingdom as of Tuesday.

Indonesia is among seven Muslim-majority countries — including Pakistan, Malaysia, Bangladesh, Morocco, Turkiye and Cote d’Ivoire — where Saudi Arabia is operating its Makkah Route initiative.


Rescue efforts underway for 260 workers trapped in a South African gold mine

Updated 24 min 15 sec ago
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Rescue efforts underway for 260 workers trapped in a South African gold mine

JOHANNESBURG: Rescue efforts are underway in South Africa to bring 260 workers trapped in a gold mine for a day back to the surface, the Sibanye Stillwater mining company said on Friday.
According to the company, an initial investigation showed that a sub-shaft rock winder skip door opened at the loading point and caused some damage to the mineshaft at the Kloof mine, west of Johannesburg.
“Following a detailed risk assessment, it was decided that employees should remain at the sub-shaft station until it is safe to proceed to the surface, in order to avoid walking long distances at this time,” the company said in a statement.
The National Union of Mineworkers, which represents workers at the Kloof mine, said the miners have been trapped for almost 24 hours, with the company repeatedly changing the estimated time for them to return to the surface.
“We are very concerned because the mine did not even make this incident public until we reported it to the media,” said NUM spokesman Livhuwani Mammburu.
The company said all miners were accounted for and safe, adding that it expected to hoist them back to the surface on Friday.


China criticizes US ban on Harvard’s international students

Updated 46 min 26 sec ago
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China criticizes US ban on Harvard’s international students

BANGKOK: The Chinese government said Friday that the Trump administration’s move to ban international students from Harvard would harm America’s international standing, and one university in Hong Kong looked to capitalize on the uncertainty by promising to take them in.
Chinese students make up a large part of Harvard University’s international student population. The university enrolled 6,703 international students across all of its schools in 2024, according to the school’s data, with 1,203 of those coming from China.
The Trump administration’s move, announced Thursday, was a hot topic on Chinese social media. State broadcaster CCTV questioned whether the US would remain a top destination for foreign students, noting Harvard was already suing the US government in court.
“But with the long litigation period, thousands of international students may have trouble waiting,” the CCTV commentary said.
It went on to say that it becomes necessary for international students to consider other options “when policy uncertainty becomes the norm.”
Educational cooperation with the US is mutually beneficial and China opposes its politicization, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said at a daily briefing in Beijing.
“The relevant actions by the US side will only damage its own image and international credibility,” she said.
She added that China would firmly protect the rights and interests of Chinese students and scholars abroad but she didn’t offer any details on how it would do so in this situation.
The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology extended an open invitation to international students already at Harvard and those who have been admitted. The institution posted a news release saying it would provide unconditional offers, streamlined admission procedures and academic support to facilitate a seamless transition.
Some people in China joked online about having the university open a branch in the northeastern Chinese city of Harbin, whose name shares the same character as Harvard’s name in Chinese.
The issue of Chinese students studying overseas has long been a point of tension in the relationship with the United States. During Trump’s first term, China’s Ministry of Education warned students about rising rejections rates and shorter terms for visas in the US
Last year, the Chinese foreign ministry protested that a number of Chinese students had been interrogated and sent home upon arrival at US airports.
Chinese state media has long played up gun violence in the US and portrayed America as a dangerous place. Some Chinese students are opting to study in the UK or other countries rather than the US.


Swedish intelligence lowers terror threat level

Updated 23 May 2025
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Swedish intelligence lowers terror threat level

STOCKHOLM: Sweden’s intelligence service said Friday it was lowering its terror alert level from “high threat” to “elevated threat,” saying the risk of an attack had subsided.
The Swedish Security Service (Sapo) raised the level in August 2023 to “high threat” — the fourth level on a scale of five — after angry reactions to a series of protests involving desecrations of the Qur'an made the country a “prioritized target.”
“Propaganda against Sweden has subsided and Sweden is not specifically mentioned as a target,” Fredrik Hallstrom, head of operations at the Swedish Security Service, told a press conference.
“We do not see the same intense flow of attack threats directed at Sweden,” he added.
Sapo said it now considered the terror alert level to be at “elevated threat” — the third level on its five-point scale.
Hallstrom cautioned that with “an elevated threat, there is room for a terrorist attack to occur.”
A series of Qur'an burnings across the country — most notably by Iraqi Christian Salwan Momika — in the summer of 2023 sparked outrage in the Muslim world.
It strained relations between Sweden and several Middle Eastern countries, and Iraqi protesters stormed the Swedish embassy in Baghdad twice in July 2023, starting fires within the compound on the second occasion.
Momika ended up facing charges of inciting ethnic hatred, but in January of this year he was fatally shot in an apartment just hours before the court was due to deliver its ruling.
His co-protester Salwan Najem, also of Iraqi origin, was ultimately found guilty of inciting ethnic hatred during four Qur'an burnings in 2023.
Despite the lowered threat level, Charlotte von Essen, head of Sapo, stressed that “Sweden is in a serious security situation.”
“The worst in many years,” von Essen told reporters.
The Sapo chief pointed to the fact that the war in Ukraine was still ongoing.
“Foreign powers — and Russia in particular — are carrying out extensive security-threatening activities in and against Sweden,” she said.


Congo votes to lift immunity of former president Kabila

Updated 23 May 2025
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Congo votes to lift immunity of former president Kabila

Congo’s senate voted overwhelmingly in favor of lifting former President Joseph Kabila’s immunity from prosecution in a late night vote on Thursday over his alleged links to the M23 rebel group.
Kabila is wanted in Congo for alleged crimes against humanity for supporting the insurgency in the east, including a role in the massacre of civilians and personnel. Congo has also moved to suspend his political party and seize the assets of its leaders.
Kabila, who denies any ties to the rebel group, stepped down after almost 20 years in power in 2018, yielding to protests. He has been out of the Central African country since late 2023, mostly in South Africa.
The senate backed lifting his immunity by 88 votes to 5 in a secret ballot.
Kabila has been threatening to return to Congo for weeks to help find a solution to the crisis in the east, where Rwandan-backed M23 rebels now control large swathes of territory.
A return to Congo by Kabila could complicate the bid to end the rebellion in eastern Congo, which contains vast supplies of critical minerals that President Donald Trump’s administration is keen to access.
Washington is pushing for a peace agreement between the two sides to be signed this summer, accompanied by minerals deals aimed at bringing billions of dollars of Western investment to the region, Massad Boulos, US President Donald Trump’s senior adviser for Africa, told Reuters earlier this month.
Kabila came to power in 2001 after his father’s assassination. He refused to stand down when his final term officially ended in 2016, leading to deadly protests, before agreeing to leave office following an election in 2018.