Pro-Palestine student groups from King’s College London launched an encampment at King’s College London’s (KCL) Strand campus yesterday evening, exactly a year after the same protest movement started in 2024.
Students from KCL Stands For Justice (KCL S4J) and other London groups have set up around a dozen tents in the Quad, between the King’s Building and the Dickson Poon School of Law in Somerset House. So far, there have been no reports of violence against or on the part of the protestors.
“We’ve had enough and now we’re back,” said a KCL S4J spokesperson in a reel on Instagram. The pro-Palestine groups express disappointment with the University’s lack of response to their demands despite negotiations: “The administration has stonewalled discussions and dismissed our grievous concerns.”
“The university’s continued refusal to meet our demand despite engaging in negotiations demonstrates a blatant disregard and hypocrisy towards the principles of justice, transparency, and accountability that it claims to uphold,” they wrote in a post on Instagram.
KCL Senior Vice President Jeremy Cook wrote in a university-wide email that while the University values students’ freedom of speech and protest, “the protest as it currently stands is not consistent with our policy and we are addressing this.”
The encampment will include “protest, speeches, teach-ins, workshops, community gathering and other forms of peaceful demonstration”, according to the organisers.
Israel’s current war on Gaza started after Hamas attacked Israel, killing 1,200 and taking hostage civilians on 7 October 2023. The Israeli military has since killed over 50,000 people in Gaza. The UN Human Rights Office reports that about 70% killed were women and children. Every university in Gaza has been destroyed.
The movement has laid out five demands that are largely the same as last year. Protestors intend to remain in the Quad until the University meets these five demands:
- KCL must condemn Israel’s genocide and scholasticide in Gaza and war crimes in the West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.
- KCL must boycott all Israeli academic institutions involved in maintaining occupation, apartheid, ethnic cleansing, and genocide in Palestine.
- KCL must divest from all corporations and arms manufacturers complicit in Israeli apartheid, genocide, and scholasticide.
- KCL must rebuild Gaza’s education sector by following through with framework they have provided for immediate, medium and long-term support for Gaza’s Higher Education.
- KCL must safeguard the freedom of speech for students, staff and allies to protest and express solidarity without fear of persecution or disciplinary action.
According to a report by the Higher Education Policy Institute, university-related antisemitic incidents reached a record high in the 2023/2024 academic year. Some of these instances were the result of the behaviour of members of encampments on UK university campuses. Some encampments made efforts to prevent antisemitism.
An Israeli student from KCL who has asked to remain anonymous said, “It’s incredibly frustrating to see these encampments reappear. Advocacy and protests are admirable – but not when they come at the expense of other students’ safety and belonging. Jewish and Israeli students should not feel threatened or alienated on the very campus we pay thousands of pounds to attend.”
This morning, a student passed around a flyer entitled “Antisemitism ‘Out of Control’ at KCL” to members of the encampment. The flyer relates reports from The Times, The Tab, Jewish Chronicle and Daily Mail of recent controversies and antisemitic incidents at KCL.
Last year, the tents remained in place for over three months. The encampment was then dissolved as a result of an eviction deadline given by KCL. Despite the negotiations, the protestors’ demands were not met by the University.
In November, the University announced its revised Ethical Investment Policy, according to which it will not knowingly invest in companies “deemed to be engaged in controversial weapons”. However, a report by KCL Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions has suggested that the University should extend its pledge to divest from conventional weapons as well.
The University has announced that there are no changes in teaching, assessment and activities on Strand. Students should have their King’s IDs. Guest access to the south side of the Strand Campus is temporarily suspended.
Editor’s note: This article was amended on 13 May to include a statement by KCL and say that the encampment was launched yesterday evening.
Correction: This article was amended to say that only KCL students are part of the encampment movement.
