Here’s what a ceasefire agreement looks like for King’s College London

After over a year of protests and widespread demand for peace in the Middle East, a ceasefire between Israel and the Palestinian group Hamas was declared on 15th January, following several months of talks facilitated by the US, Qatar, and Egypt. 

Groups such as KCL Stands 4 Justice and KCL Students for Justine for Palestine (KCLSJP) have been at the forefront of campus protests against King’s College London’s (KCL) alleged ties to Israel following the events which unfolded on October 7th 2023.  

With posts such as KCLSJP’s titled “2024 Complicity Wrapped”, detailing an overview of KCL’s investments in 2024 revealing £11.9 million was spent towards weapons systems, many have vocalised their criticisms towards the university’s financial involvement in Palestinian suffering in the past year.  

While the announcement may lead many students to conclude that activism on campus is no longer be necessary, the Palestinian liberation groups at King’s assert that they will be continuing to promote their message of demanding justice.

KCL Stands 4 Justice hones in on this sentiment, releasing a statement on the 15th January addressing the announced ceasefire, stating: “For every martyr that fell in Gaza, KCL made a return on investment, including from the murder of two King’s community members – Dr. Maisara Alrayyes and Dr. Adnan Al-Bursh.”

Dr. Maisara Alrayyes’ memorial

The statement proceeds to state that as a group standing for Palestinian liberation, they “refuse to let the University use recent political developments to absolve itself of accountability or stall negotiations”, reinforcing their goals as a group to demand inclusion in the decision making processes of the university going forward.

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What does this mean for our campus politics?

On campus grounds, while conversations around the hot button issue may seem to die out, a spokesperson of KCL Stands 4 Justice tells The King’s Tab: “In terms of us and our movement, nothing much has changed. We are now looking to press forward much more vigorously, as we understand momentum is likely going to fall short.

“Things may seem to have come to a conclusion, but they really haven’t. And for King’s they are still investing millions into an apartheid machine, while failing to give us solid grounds for rebuilding from the damage, and they fail to safeguard their students so we still have a long way to go.”

Conversely, the King’s Jewish Society also spoke to The King’s Tab about the ceasefire, and members’ safety on campus, adding: “Ever since its initial beginning of October 7th 2023, Jewish, Israeli and non-Jewish students who form part of our group have expressed substantial concerns with their safety on campus. It has featured much within Jewish Society circles and WhatsApp chats of students being threatened, scare mongered, intimidated, bullied and often excluded from social circles due to their religion or political views.”

The society spokesperson further detailed instances of bullying and harassment towards students holding pro-Israel views, sharing: “This has no place on campus but it has continued to progress in a very adverse manner.”

When asking the KCL Jewish Society what a ceasefire means for campus politics, and the university on a broader scale, they explained: “As the written date of this document is past the initial announcing of the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, we have already seen noticeable effects on campus life.”

Now the demand by SJP, UCU and other anti-Israeli organisations for “ceasefire now” has been dropped, they have decided to continue their pursuits under the boycott and divest chants.

The attention has now shifted from the ceasefire chants, which has now been achieved, to divest of Israeli investments. Certainly, “things” have calmed down but that is not to say that the general intimidation felt and endured by my members has finished; it still ensues, often in socially and physically unsavoury ways.”

A ceasefire on campus

While the ceasefire deal may cause the discussion around the King’s involvement to dwindle on the campus ground over time, groups such as KCLSFJ and KCL Stands 4 Justice maintain dedicated to keeping the discourse and awareness alive amongst students, with a rally organised by KCL Stands 4 Justice on 20th January continuing demands for King’s divestment from alleged weapons production used in the conflict, with recent news announcing at least 100 Palestinian deaths having occurred following the ceasefire.

And for King’s Jewish Society, the spokesperson said, they are “interested to see what this new ceasefire means for King’s”.

Adding: “As ever, Jews, Israelis and members of the university who support Israel, remain optimistic despite all hate we face. Nonetheless, we are excited to see a relaxed and less oppressive campus-face whilst still remaining wary of the ever-looming threat that we knew all too well before the ceasefire agreement.”

King’s College London’s response

The King’s Tab contacted King’s College London for a response regarding the comments made by students about their fears for safety on campus, and the allegations of investment in weapons for Israel.

A King’s College London spokesperson said: “We fully support and are committed to upholding the right of freedom of expression and protest within the law. Since October 7 we have engaged with our Israeli, Jewish, Islamic, Palestinian and wider student societies, to listen to any concerns and provide extensive pastoral support.

“In response to concerns for safety, both on campus and across London more generally, we have enhanced security measures to keep our community safe on campus. Racism, antisemitism, abuse, incitement and harassment are unacceptable and have no place at King’s.”

They also mentioned the services available for King’s students who have experienced or are experiencing bullying or harassment because of their political views: “Please report these incidents using our online tool, Report + Support so we can investigate in line with our robust processes.”

Furthermore, in regard to the allegations of weapon investment, they said: “King’s maintains an ethical investment policy, and specifically invests in funds that proactively screen to avoid controversial and unethical sectors and industries. Last year, our governance committees also formalised our existing informal policy of screening out investment funds which invest in companies involved in controversial weapons.”