This evening the society announced the cancellation of a panel event after substantial backlash and plans for rallies reached a mass public audience.
In a message to those who’d signed up, the organisers said:
“Due to intimidatory activity surrounding the event, as well as dozens of death threats directed towards our speaker Ely Lassman, we have chosen to prioritise the safety of our guests, attendees, and members. We are very saddened to see the unfathomable levels of hostility within the King’s community regarding anything remotely Israeli.”
KCL Israel Society
They also expressed regret that they had not been able to facilitate the discussion.
One intended speakers was Kiyah Willis, who works at the Objective Standard Institute. Kiyah’s public messages had come under scrutiny in recent days after it emerged that she had questioned the veracity of Islamophobia and suggested that opposition to Islam was “common sense”.
These comments had caused substantial backlash from the student community online and there were questions over if her public comments adhered to KCL and KCLSU rules over external speakers.
The other intended speaker was Ely Lassman, the founder and chair of Prometheus on Campus, who is also an Israel Defence Force (IDF) veteran.
In recent days, several groups had been campaigning against the event. One post about the panel, liked by over 12,000 people, stated that “we students demand that no institution, designed to educate, host any individual that represents the Zionist identity”. The post also encouraged followers to attend the event and protest.
Another post, liked by almost 1,000 people, called the speakers “violence, hate and genocide supporters” and encouraged King’s students to rally against the event.
In 2016, police were called to a protest against a similar KCL Israel Society event after windows were broken, chairs were thrown and fire alarms were set off by protestors.
KCL Israel Society have been approached for comment.
