London – The School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, has expelled second-year law and international relations student Haya Adam following a year-long suspension and multiple disciplinary actions linked to her pro-Palestine activism. This is believed to be the first such expulsion at a UK university over Palestine-related advocacy, reported Middle East Eye.
Haya, a leading voice in the SOAS Palestine Society and organiser at the “Liberated Zone,” has been outspoken since before the escalation of Israel’s assault on Gaza. She says the university accused her of “harassment, abusive behaviour, and operational obstruction,” but insists she was punished for opposing what she calls a “live-streamed genocide.”
“I thought I was joining a space for anti-colonial education and open dissent, but behind its decolonial façade, SOAS operates as a tool of empire,” Haya said.
Her disciplinary troubles began in June 2024 after participating in what the university deemed an “unauthorised protest.” This was followed by a nine-month suspension for questioning Vice Chancellor Adam Habib over the institution’s alleged complicity in genocide. Haya claims she was suspended simply for being present during an unrelated incident involving the Students’ Union CEO.
The final expulsion reportedly stemmed from a political commentary video in which Haya criticised the Students’ Union, particularly representative Safia, for failing to uphold her political manifesto and represent students’ concerns over the university’s links to settler-colonialism in Palestine.
Supporters say Haya’s case is part of a broader pattern of repression at SOAS. The “SOAS Liberated Zone” collective called the expulsion “a blatant attack on freedom of speech” and “a tactic to intimidate students into silence.”
Tara Mann, another activist, has also been banned from campus for six months for attempting to hold the Students’ Union accountable over alleged complicity in Israeli settler-colonialism.
In solidarity, Asim Qureshi, Research Director of CAGE International, publicly burned his SOAS Master of Laws certificate, declaring: “I don’t want to be part of a university that markets decoloniality.”
The incident has ignited a wider debate on academic freedom, political expression, and institutional complicity within UK higher education.
