Latest news with #PalestinianStudents
Yahoo
09-08-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'I remain trapped,' says Gaza student in UK visa plea
"Goldsmiths University believed in me, the British public stood beside and MPs shared a letter of support. Despite all of this, I remain trapped," says Palestinian student Haia Mohammed. The 22-year-old is among four students in Gaza who have been awarded scholarships at Goldsmiths, University of London, but are unable to leave the territory as they cannot submit the biometric data needed by the Home Office to process their study visas. Ms Mohammed's personal plight was cited in a letter signed by 113 MPs calling for the government asking to allow biometric checking in Egypt or Jordan. The Home Office says it is considering how it can best support the students. According to the letter from MPs, which was led by Barry Gardiner, Ms Mohammed is one of more than 80 other students who could not record their biometric data, which can include fingerprints, as there is no visa application centre in Gaza. The 22-year-old was awarded the Goldsmiths Palestinian Scholarship to study BA English with Creative Writing, with the course due to start in September. She told BBC News that before the war "I was studying in the school, like everyone, and graduated with 95%. Then I joined the university as a [computer] programmer. "Then the war started and they destroyed the university so I tried to learn on Zoom." The specialist computer needed for her course was then destroyed meaning she had no means to continue her limited online course. "There was no chance to learn after the destruction," she explains. Ms Mohammed says she has been displaced multiple times along with her mother and siblings since the beginning of Israel's bombardment of the territory. While she originally pursued a course in computer programming, she says she has always had a passion for poetry. "Before the war, I was writing about the sea, the sky, the light, my friends," she says. "But when the war was coming, I have to write about my people, tragedy. This is not easy, writing about your people and what's happening." "People right now see me in Gaza eyes. They don't see me as Haia, they see Gaza in me," she says. "This is heavy but sometimes you have to act for your people and your country. "We don't have the luxury of giving up." MPs issue plea over Gaza student visa delay 'Thank you, but it's too late': Why some Palestinians aren't convinced by Starmer's promise 'I'm so tired': Mother of starving Gazan baby speaks to BBC Explaining her determination to continue her studies, she says: "For me education isn't just to learn. "For me and my people it's how to tell our stories, how to communicate with the world, how poetry can be a tool to survive. "It's the way to achieve my dream and become what I want." Nora Parr, a volunteer with the UK Coalition for Gaza Students, says the university applications made by the students seeking places in the UK have been "done under the most dire circumstances". "Students are travelling miles to go and get a reliable wi-fi signal to upload their documents, to do their interviews," she says. "University interviews are stressful for students on the best of times... They have persevered because this is how they are working to build their future at a time when their future is being slowly destroyed." Ms Parr called on the British government to negotiate with Israeli officials to facilitate the students' exit from Gaza and on to neighbouring countries, such as Jordan or Egypt, where biometrics can be processed. On Thursday Gardiner, the MP for Brent West, told the BBC he and his fellow MPs were not asking for biometric checks to be dispensed with, but for them to be deferred to other countries. "The point is there is nowhere that they can be done in Gaza," he said. "We dispensed with those checks for students from Ukraine in a war situation, and other countries have done it as well. "This is not saying let's allow people with a dodgy record come to the UK people, that's just nonsense." A Home Office spokesperson said the situation "on the ground in Gaza is extremely challenging" and officials were "doing everything we can to find a solution". A Goldsmiths University spokesperson said: "We remain ready to support Palestinian students once they arrive at Goldsmiths. "We continue to monitor the situation closely and will offer appropriate support where we can to all applicants, including those holding an offer of a scholarship." Listen to the best of BBC Radio London on Sounds and follow BBC London on Facebook, X and Instagram. Send your story ideas to
BBC News
09-08-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
'I remain trapped,' says Gaza student in UK visa plea
"Goldsmiths University believed in me, the British public stood beside and MPs shared a letter of support. Despite all of this, I remain trapped," says Palestinian student Haia Mohammed. The 22-year-old is among four students in Gaza who have been awarded scholarships at Goldsmiths, University of London, but are unable to leave the territory as they cannot submit the biometric data needed by the Home Office to process their study visas. Ms Mohammed's personal plight was cited in a letter signed by 113 MPs calling for the government asking to allow biometric checking in Egypt or Home Office says it is considering how it can best support the students. According to the letter from MPs, which was led by Barry Gardiner, Ms Mohammed is one of more than 80 other students who could not record their biometric data, which can include fingerprints, as there is no visa application centre in 22-year-old was awarded the Goldsmiths Palestinian Scholarship to study BA English with Creative Writing, with the course due to start in September. She told BBC News that before the war "I was studying in the school, like everyone, and graduated with 95%. Then I joined the university as a [computer] programmer."Then the war started and they destroyed the university so I tried to learn on Zoom."The specialist computer needed for her course was then destroyed meaning she had no means to continue her limited online course."There was no chance to learn after the destruction," she explains. Ms Mohammed says she has been displaced multiple times along with her mother and siblings since the beginning of Israel's bombardment of the she originally pursued a course in computer programming, she says she has always had a passion for poetry."Before the war, I was writing about the sea, the sky, the light, my friends," she says."But when the war was coming, I have to write about my people, tragedy. This is not easy, writing about your people and what's happening.""People right now see me in Gaza eyes. They don't see me as Haia, they see Gaza in me," she says. "This is heavy but sometimes you have to act for your people and your country."We don't have the luxury of giving up." Explaining her determination to continue her studies, she says: "For me education isn't just to learn."For me and my people it's how to tell our stories, how to communicate with the world, how poetry can be a tool to survive."It's the way to achieve my dream and become what I want."Nora Parr, a volunteer with the UK Coalition for Gaza Students, says the university applications made by the students seeking places in the UK have been "done under the most dire circumstances"."Students are travelling miles to go and get a reliable wi-fi signal to upload their documents, to do their interviews," she says."University interviews are stressful for students on the best of times... They have persevered because this is how they are working to build their future at a time when their future is being slowly destroyed."Ms Parr called on the British government to negotiate with Israeli officials to facilitate the students' exit from Gaza and on to neighbouring countries, such as Jordan or Egypt, where biometrics can be processed. On Thursday Gardiner, the MP for Brent West, told the BBC he and his fellow MPs were not asking for biometric checks to be dispensed with, but for them to be deferred to other countries."The point is there is nowhere that they can be done in Gaza," he said."We dispensed with those checks for students from Ukraine in a war situation, and other countries have done it as well."This is not saying let's allow people with a dodgy record come to the UK people, that's just nonsense."A Home Office spokesperson said the situation "on the ground in Gaza is extremely challenging" and officials were "doing everything we can to find a solution". A Goldsmiths University spokesperson said: "We remain ready to support Palestinian students once they arrive at Goldsmiths. "We continue to monitor the situation closely and will offer appropriate support where we can to all applicants, including those holding an offer of a scholarship."
Al Jazeera
06-08-2025
- Politics
- Al Jazeera
Accepted but trapped: Why won't the UK evacuate its students from Gaza?
In September 2025, I am supposed to start a new life, not in war-torn Gaza, but in a lecture hall in the United Kingdom. After nearly a year of endless efforts, applications, exams, and navigating bombings, displacement and blackout zones just to apply, I was accepted. Not once, but five times, by the Universities of Glasgow, Edinburgh, Birmingham, Exeter, and Ulster. I even secured funding. But instead of boarding a plane, I remain trapped in Gaza, a place where war has flattened homes, stolen futures and caged dreams. The bombs have not stopped. Neither has our will. Unlike students in other war-torn areas, we, Gaza Palestinian students, are not being offered any path out. Many countries, such as France, Ireland and Italy, have successfully evacuated their students through government-coordinated efforts and humanitarian corridors, like via the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). These governments made it clear that their students matter. The UK has not. Despite its global standing and historic reputation for championing justice and education, it remains silent. This is not just my story. It is a collective cry from dozens of us, admitted to top British universities, with scholarships or personal savings, who survived bombs and sieges only to be abandoned at the final border: there is no visa centre in Gaza to submit fingerprints, and no route out without evacuation. After the war broke out in late 2023, I was forced to pause my online university studies, as both the classes and the fees became impossible to maintain under the siege. But I did not give up on education. Instead, I began applying to UK universities through UCAS, a process that demanded a carefully written personal statement, recommendation letters, detailed documentation and weeks of waiting. I submitted everything using borrowed internet in relatives' homes or from paid co-working spaces that I reached on foot, under the midday sun or pouring rain, with no transportation. There were days when I sat on a plastic chair in the street, emailing colleges and researching entry requirements while missiles flew overhead. When universities asked for English qualification submissions, I had no centre in Gaza to support me, not for training, not even to register. Most UK universities would not accept Duolingo, the only test I could afford and access online. So I stretched every resource and applied for each institution's approved test, juggling freelance mobile programming by day to support myself and studying English by night, often under a mobile flashlight. Some tests required constant camera and microphone monitoring, difficult in a war zone where displacement, noise and unstable internet made focus nearly impossible. One infraction and the test would be void. My laptop battery often died before the test ended. But I endured and succeeded. My family shares this hunger for education. My brother is a mechanical engineer who won the competitive Qaddumi scholarship last year to begin a master's programme at the University of Liverpool in January 2025, but it has been deferred. My sister was accepted into a Turkish government-funded medical programme at Samsun University, which was also postponed because of the war. Three of us, all with dreams and drive, are stuck in Gaza. We did everything right. So why are we left behind? After much struggle, I finally passed the tests and converted my conditional offers into unconditional ones. I even secured funding, enough for at least the first year's tuition fees and living expenses. I was also promised support from private foundations, conditional only on submitting my visa application. But when I tried to apply for a visa, I hit a dead end: biometric fingerprints. The UK has no visa centre in Gaza. To complete the process, I would need to cross a border that is shut unless I am listed for evacuation. There are more than 100 Gazan students accepted to UK universities, 48 with full scholarships, who face the same deadlock. Many, like me, are running out of time. Inside the UK, institutions like the Gaza Scholarship Initiative (GSI) have stepped in to amplify our voice to the government because they believe in us. Some have carried their offers from 2024, after universities generously deferred their admission. Most universities, however, will not offer such flexibility again. For all of us, 2025 is our last chance. Other countries acted. Ireland coordinated directly with Israel to evacuate its students via the Karem Abu Salem (known to Israelis as Kerem Shalom) crossing. France and Italy did the same. Students were transported to nearby countries to finish visa processing and begin their studies. They understood the stakes, not just academic, but human. These governments coordinated with humanitarian agencies to get their students out, then facilitated visas and asylum claims. The UK has done nothing similar, despite numerous appeals from students, universities, advocacy groups like GSI, and members of parliament. We have written letters to MPs, university heads and the British Council. Even university leaders who support our admission cannot help unless the UK government steps in. This silence hurts most because it is not due to incapability. The UK can act but it simply chooses not to. If the government coordinated with Israeli authorities and humanitarian groups like the ICRC, students could be evacuated through Kerem Shalom into Egypt or Jordan, where they could finalise visas and travel. This is not speculative. It is exactly what other democratic nations have done. The difference? They cared enough to try. What does this say about whose futures matter? The UK has invested for decades in international education, offering prestigious scholarships like Chevening and the Commonwealth. It champions learning and opportunity and leads countless international partnerships. But when it comes to Gaza students, who embody that very ethos, we are being forgotten. What message does that send? Does our survival, our future, matter less? Are we invisible to the very system that welcomed us in writing? I still believe in British education. I am inspired by its professors, challenged by its rigour, and drawn to its diversity and values. I fought for my place there. I hope, not just for me but for my peers, that the UK government remembers its legacy and chooses to act. Because if not now, when? The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial stance.
Arab News
20-07-2025
- Politics
- Arab News
OIC's COMSTECH invites Gaza universities' presidents to Islamabad to explore academic continuity
ISLAMABAAD: The Organization of Islamic Cooperation's (OIC) COMSTECH Coordinator General Dr. Iqbal Choudhary on Sunday invited the presidents of major Gaza universities to Islamabad, hoping their visit would lead to solutions for academic continuity in the war-torn area. The OIC's Standing Committee on Scientific and Technological Cooperation (COMSTECH) has facilitated Palestinian students in securing higher education amid Israel's military offensive in Gaza. Israeli strikes in Gaza have killed at least 57,000 people and destroyed hundreds of schools since October 2023, dealing a major blow to the education sector in the area. Choudhary held a high-level virtual meeting with the presidents of all major universities in Gaza to coordinate a 'collective humanitarian and academic response' to the war's impact on higher education sector in the region, the OIC body said in its press release. 'During the meeting, the Coordinator General extended a formal invitation to Gaza's university presidents currently outside the region to visit Islamabad,' the statement said. 'The visit aims to foster direct dialogue with key stakeholders and explore collaborative solutions to sustain academic continuity under these extraordinary circumstances.' Choudhary conveyed his deep concern for the people of Palestine, particularly academics, students, and researchers as Israel's war rages on. 'The suffering of the people of Gaza is unbearable, yet their resilience is inspiring,' Choudhary was quoted as saying by COMSTECH. During the meeting, the university representatives gave a presentation highlighting key proposals to facilitate medical training for displaced students, capacity-building for health professionals, access to scientific publishing, and supporting research on the psychological impact of war, COMSTECH said. 'Participants also emphasized the immediate need for virtual learning platforms and remote laboratory facilities as many university campuses have been destroyed,' the statement added. COMSTECH, in collaboration with the Association of Private Sector Universities of Pakistan (APSUP) and member universities of the COMSTECH Consortium of Excellence, initiated a program in 2021 offering 500 fully funded scholarships and fellowships to Palestinian students. This number was increased to 5,000 scholarships in 2023. Many Palestinian students have already arrived in Pakistan under this program and are pursuing full-degree programs, while efforts are underway to bring more students to the country.
The Guardian
19-07-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Can a common denominator unite warring contestant nations at the International Mathematics Olympiad?
A resounding cheer erupted when on Monday three Palestinian teenagers shuffled on to the stage of a convention centre tucked away behind the golden beaches of Australia's Sunshine Coast. All of them from the West Bank, they were only half of a team able to attend the International Mathematics Olympiad, a gathering of the world's brightest young mathematical minds, where medals can offer tickets to any university in the world and launch brilliant careers. Two of their compatriots from war-ravaged Gaza could not make the journey to Australia and would instead attempt to compete remotely. But this was a marked improvement from last year's event in England, for which no Palestinian could secure a visa in time. Yet this heartfelt moment at the 66th IMO opening ceremony was followed by one that hinted at the deep divisions – driven by geopolitics and global conflict – which had played out behind closed doors just the day before and which threatened to unravel the oldest and most prestigious competition of young mathematicians. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email The students in the room did not know it, but a jury of delegates from the 114 nations gathered had, the day prior, voted as of the conclusion of the event to lift a suspension applied to Russia's membership after its 2022 full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The Ukrainian leaders were distraught, the Estonians and other Baltic nations among the outraged. Their talk had already turned to boycott. Even in the midst of Russia's full-scale invasion, Ukraine boasts an astonishing mathematical achievement. The year the war began, in 2022, Russia was suspended from the IMO and Ukrainian IMO students were evacuated. One among them from war-torn Kharkiv, Ihor Pylaiev, won his second gold medal – with a perfect score and a joint top-ranked position in the world. A number of his compatriots also medalled and, after this achievement, would earn scholarships at Cambridge. Kyiv was supposed to host last year's maths olympiad. IMO Ukraine team leader Bogdan Rublev said in his country, 'the IMO is a very important event'. Even as war raged, the Ukrainians remained optimistic that the violence would end and they could host the IMO as planned. But, those hopes were officially dashed when Bath was named Kyiv's replacement. 'It broke our hearts,' Rublev said. 'We had worked hard to prepare and we were excited to welcome the world to our country.' Fellow Ukrainian representative Anastasiia Venchkovska, who was translating for Rublev on the Sunshine Coast, said Russia's IMO suspension was 'not just about mathematics'. 'Russia is not just a country at war, it is a state that systemically targets education, culture and children,' Venchkovska said. 'That is terrorism.' 'A country that destroys Ukrainian schools and universities should not sit at the same table as those against whom it commits genocide every day.' The opening ceremony at the Twin Waters Novotel Resort on Monday was well intentioned and, otherwise, good fun. The parade of nations, each with teams of up to six high school students, was determined by the distance each had travelled to compete. In a room full of sharp minds, it was a bit of sport to guess at the order by which teams would take to the stage and pose for the cameras. The Moroccans (17,934km) surprised many by being called up first, each in flowing white robes beneath a red fez, before making way for the Portuguese (17,887km), who bounded and hooted up the stairs to form a mini-pyramid. The Norwegians (15,333km) wore black suits, ties and sunglasses inside, the Peruvians (13,117km) football-style red and white trackies. The Iraqis (13,240km) chanted 'Lions of Mesopotamia!', the Aussies (1,030km) 'Oi, Oi, Oi!' The three young Palestinians (14,044km), however, made no spectacle, each briefly clutching their national flag. Their faces betrayed little emotion. They didn't have to – everyone in the room understood how much it meant to stand on that stage, knew the life-changing opportunity that platform might provide. 'It was very beautiful,' Palestine team leader Samed AlHajajla said. 'The happiness is not complete, it was sad that we couldn't have all the children.' 'But at least it is good to have half of the team here in person.' Though few picked who would open the parade, it didn't take a genius to guess who would follow the Palestinians. Six young Israelis (14,040km) came smiling on stage, playfully brandishing soft toy otters, the team's mascot, and two Star of David flags. The cheers and applause fell to a smatter. One or two muttered boos. Had an effort to suspend Israel's IMO membership on Sunday been successful, this moment might never have transpired. These six young people could still have competed – but remotely. The Israeli flag, like the Russian, would not have flown on the Sunshine Coast, nor next year at Shanghai. Instead, the opposite will happen. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion The IMO is a tightly choreographed and controlled event: team leaders set the exam questions and so have to be quarantined from their students to prevent cheating. Before being whisked away to the leaders' site at a resort in Noosa, IMO board president Gregor Dolinar briefly answered questions about the jury meeting which resolved to lift Russia's suspension. He described it as a 'long and constructive' discussion from which the main message was that 'we want to stay out of politics as much as possible'. 'We exchanged our views and we said that our primary goal is to enable as many kids from all around the world to come to the same place and to give them this opportunity to show their talent,' Dolinar said. 'So mathematics is our primary goal – if we will start to be involved in politics, we do not know where to draw the line'. The jury meeting began with AlHajajla and lasted several hours. The Palestinian team leader spoke with passion about the ordeal of his country's representatives, in particular those trapped amid the horrors of Gaza. Other nations, particularly those from the global south, agreed and spoke in support of the Palestinian motion to suspend Israel. Dolinar made several arguments as to why the IMO should remain, nonpolitical. Among them was that being political was bad for business. The sponsors that the non-profit organisation needed to finance such a logistically complicated event, he warned, did not want to deal with politically motivated organisations. The IMO board put forward its own motion which proposed that measures only be taken against a member for breaking IMO regulations – for widespread cheating, say. All current suspensions – only Russia – would expire at the end of the Australian event. This caught many by surprise – restoring Russia's membership was not in the agenda. But the motion passed with a secret ballot of 62 in favour to 23 against, with six abstentions. Israeli team leader Dan Carmon said it was 'the right choice for the IMO at this time', adding that the organisation – which is run by volunteers – spent a lot of time in the lead up to the event discussing its stance on political matters. 'I think it will be much better for the IMO, and the fostering of young minds everywhere, that we are now focusing on inclusivity instead of excluding students and countries,' Carmon said. 'I think that is a much better direction for the IMO to go in order to promote the love of mathematics in the world and promote brotherhood between nations.' Far from brotherhood – for Rublev, Venchkovska and the Ukrainians – even sharing a stage with the Russian flag was 'impossible and unacceptable'. 'We came here not only to compete but to remind the world that, behind every problem we solve on paper, there is a much bigger problem we are living through in reality,' they said. 'We ask the international community to stay consistent, to stay principled and to stand with Ukraine'. Estonian team leader Oleg Košik said his was among the Baltic nations who made clear in 2022 that they would do so 'We see the continuous barbaric aggression of Russia against Ukraine,' Košik said. 'The constant bombings of cities, innocent civilians being killed every night. If the IMO will say now, 'OK, this is fine, we don't care about it' – what message does it send to the whole world?'
