Foreign students, scholars, and professionals who conduct anti-Semitic acts or laud Hamas face expulsion from the UK under Home Office guidelines.
In the aftermath of the terror group’s attack on Israel, Immigration Minister Robert Jenrick has commissioned authorities in the department to explore how they could cancel visas on national security grounds where there is evidence of discrimination or sympathy for the terror organisation.
It follows a similar decision by France’s interior minister, Gérald Darmanin, who has ordered that all foreigners who conduct anti-Semitic acts be deported immediately. Three people have already been deported from France.
The UK has the authority to revoke visas for students, workers, and visitors on national security grounds or if it is deemed necessary for the public interest, providing there is “proportionate” evidence.
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Following Saturday’s incursion, vice-chancellors have already warned students that they may face criminal charges if they exhibit support for Hamas terrorists.
Students are said to have been reported to the police because Palestine societies at various colleges celebrated Hamas on social media following the attack, which killed hundreds of civilians.
Academics have also been accused of rationalising Hamas militants’ attacks on civilians in online articles, including one in which the fatalities were described as a “consequence” for “partying on stolen land.”
University College London said that an academic was being investigated for reposting a statement made on October 7 that said Palestinian “retaliation” was “entirely justifiable.”
“We’ve seen some sickening displays of anti-Semitism and glorification for Hamas terrorism,” a Home Office official told The Telegraph.
“If those in the UK on visas behave in this manner, it is clearly in the public interest that their visas be revoked and they be removed, as the law allows.”
“It’s important that the British Jewish community know that they are protected and we establish basic norms of conduct for those staying in the UK.”
Some of the student remarks are already being investigated by Home Office officials to determine whether and how they can take action to terminate their visas.
The Education Secretary, Gillian Keegan, has written to university vice-chancellors, urging them to act “swiftly and decisively” to eliminate “implicit or explicit” threats against Jewish students.
“We have seen evidence of a number of student societies that support Palestinians sending out inflammatory messages that show support for Hamas, which is, as you know, a proscribed terrorist organisation,” Ms. Keegan wrote in her letter.
