proPalestine

Hackers took over the PA system at Harrisburg International Airport in Pennsylvania, broadcasting a pro-Palestine message and insults against the leaders of the US and Israel. Similar incidents were reported at three Canadian airports on the same day.

Riot police used tear gas and water cannons to break up pro-Palestinian protests at Israel’s World Cup qualifier against Italy. Defeat for Israel in the match effectively ended the team’s hopes of automatic qualification.

Tens of thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters have marched in London, expressing scepticism and cautious hope as a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in Gaza has entered its second day.

“We’re … sharing the relief of the Palestinian people,” said Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, which has organised mass monthly pro-Palestinian rallies in London since the start of the war on October 7, 2023.

“But we also come here sharing their trepidation that this ceasefire will not hold, rooted in the knowledge that Israel has violated every ceasefire agreement it’s ever signed,” Jamal told the AFP news agency on Saturday.

Despite concerns about United States President Donald Trump’s proposed plan to end the war on Gaza, which calls for a transitional authority ultimately headed by the US leader, Jamal said there was an “immense sense of relief”.

A sea of red and green, the colours of the Palestinian flag, formed along the embankment of the River Thames in central London, where the largely peaceful march began.

Protesters donned black and white keffiyeh scarves, carried signs saying “Stop Starving Gaza” and “Stop the genocide”, and chanted “Free Palestine” and “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”

Police removed several pro-Israel protesters from the crowd.

Al Jazeera’s Rory Challands, reporting from the rally in London, said there has been “no cease to the demonstrations … in the UK expressing solidarity with Palestine”.

Challands said that while 32 such protests have been held so far, Saturday’s was a “huge one” as protesters came from all over the country.

People travelled to the capital on buses and trains from cities including Bristol, Cambridge and Sheffield.

The government in the UK has been making it increasingly difficult for pro-Palestine demonstrations to take place and wants the police to have more power to restrict such gatherings, Challands noted.

Last weekend, London police arrested at least 442 people at a rally in support of the proscribed group Palestine Action in central London.

Israel’s two-year war on Gaza has killed more than 67,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities, and caused a humanitarian crisis. Famine conditions were declared in some parts of the besieged territory last month, and a UN commission has accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.

Challands said people were sceptical that the latest ceasefire would hold for a “significant amount of time”.

“They are worried about the perseverance of US President Donald Trump,” he said.

Katrina Scales, a 23-year-old sociology and psychology student attending the rally, said the ceasefire was “not enough” and she planned to keep attending marches.

“I’m here with my friends to help show that there is continuously eyes on Gaza, even considering the current ceasefire,” she said.

Trade unionist Steve Headley, in his 50s, said he is also unconvinced.

“Hopefully now we’ve got the first steps towards peace, but we’ve been here before,” Headley told AFP. He questioned Trump’s “plans for a ‘Riviera’ in Gaza” that the US president touted this year.

For 74-year-old Miranda Finch, part of a group marching under the banner “descendants of Holocaust survivors against Gaza genocide”, the ceasefire was “very little”.

“The Palestinians are not going back to nothing. They’re going back to less than nothing. Rubble on top of bodies on top of sewage.”

Fabio Capogreco, 42, who was attending his fifth demonstration with his two children and wife, said the ceasefire was “too little, too late”, adding that those complicit in the war need to be held accountable.

“Hopefully it’s one of the last times we need to come here to manifest,” the bar manager said. “But I think it’s too early to say everything is OK.”

Protests were also planned later on Saturday in other European cities, including Berlin. A march is also expected on Sunday in Sydney, Australia, where pro-Palestine demonstrations have filled streets in recent weeks.

Videos show German police officers beating pro-Palestine protesters in Berlin after authorities banned a planned demonstration. Around 500 people gathered near Berlin’s City Hall chanting slogans and waving flags, before several were attacked and detained.

Huge numbers of people have turned out at pro-Palestinian rallies across Europe, calling for an immediate end to the war in Gaza and the release of activists on board a flotilla carrying humanitarian aid to the territory.

Police in Rome said about 250,000 people attended a fourth consecutive day of protests on Saturday after Israel intercepted the 45-boat flotilla trying to reach Gaza last week.

Protesters in the Italian capital, including families with children, shouted: “We are all Palestinians,” “Free Palestine” and “Stop the genocide” as many carried Palestinian flags and wore black-and-white-chequered keffiyehs.

In Spain, about 70,000 people took to the streets in Barcelona, according to the police, while the government in Madrid reported nearly 92,000 marched in the capital.

The Global Sumud Flotilla, which was intercepted on Wednesday, departed Barcelona in early September and had been seeking to break the Israeli blockade of Gaza, where a United Nations-backed hunger monitor says famine has taken hold. About 50 Spaniards on the flotilla have been detained by Israel, Spanish Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Albares told public television in an interview broadcast on Saturday.

Marta Carranza, a 65-year-old pensioner demonstrating in Barcelona with a Palestinian flag on her back, said Israel’s policy “has been wrong for many years and we have to take to the streets”.

Elsewhere, several thousand people marched through the centre of Dublin to mark what organisers described as “two years of genocide” in Gaza. Along with Ireland, Spain is among the fiercest European critics of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza.

In Ireland, speakers called for sanctions on Israel, an immediate end to the conflict and Palestinian involvement in any ceasefire plan.

In London, police said they made at least 442 arrests at a gathering in support of the proscribed Palestine Action group.

In Paris, where about 10,000 people gathered, a spokesperson for the French contingent of the Sumud Flotilla, Helene Coron, told the crowd: “We’ll never stop.”

“This flotilla didn’t get to Gaza. But we will send another, then another until Palestine and Gaza are free,” she said.

In Italy, Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s right-wing government has been criticised for its inaction regarding the siege of Gaza. On Saturday, Meloni accused demonstrators of defacing a statue of Pope John Paul II with graffiti in front of Rome’s main railway station, calling it a “shameful act”.

On September 14, about 100,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators forced the final stage of the Vuelta a Espana cycling race in the Spanish capital to be halted because an Israeli team was competing. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Israel should be barred from international sport over the war in Gaza, just as Russia has been penalised over its invasion of Ukraine.

In September, Spain announced it would ban imports from Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which are illegal under international law.

PRO-PALESTINE marches have gone ahead today with protesters gathering in London and Manchester.

The demonstrations are taking place despite calls from Sir Keir Starmer and police to cancel the events following the terror attack on a synagogue in Manchester on Thursday.

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Dozens of police officers have been seen lined up next to Nelson’s Column in central London ahead of the arrival of hundreds of protesters supporting banned group Palestine Action.

Just after 1pm, protesters from the group Defend our Juries arrived in Trafalgar Square began clapping before sitting down.

They chanted “free, free Palestine” and some began writing “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”, while others held pre-written signs.

A woman in blue scrubs stood in the crowds with a sign reading “nurse against genocide”.

Several campaigners from the Stop the War coalition are already in Trafalgar Square, holding placards and Palestine flags.

The Metropolitan Police said it had arrested six people over the banner draped on Westminster Bridge in support of banned group Palestine Action.

The force said: “Officers were quickly on scene, the banner had been removed and the six people involved have been arrested for supporting a proscribed organisation.”

Meanwhile, pro-Palestinian supporters grew to around 100 before speeches began outside Manchester Cathedral.

Scotland Yard chief Sir Mark Rowley had asked for protests to be postponed due to the drain on resources while extra officers are stationed at synagogues.

He also warned the rallies “will likely create further tensions and some might say lacks sensitivity” in the wake of the attack.

It comes after pro-Palestine protesters took to the streets just hours after Adrian Daulby, 53, and Melvin Cravitz, 66, were murdered by Jihad Al-Shamie.

The pair were brutally killed by the 35-year-old jihadist during Yom Kippur –  the holiest day in the Jewish calendar.

Speaking at yesterday’s Manchester synagogue vigil, locals turned on ministers, yelling “you have blood on your hands”.

Furious mourners slammed the Government for not doing enough to stop the “hate marches”, which are still set to go ahead.

Italy are due to play Israel in a FIFA World Cup qualifier in Udine but there have been calls for a boycott.

Pro-Palestinian protesters approached the gates of the Italy football team’s training centre on Friday to demand the cancellation of its upcoming World Cup qualifier against Israel due to the war on Gaza.

The protest was part of a national strike that was reacting to Israeli forces’ interdiction of an aid flotilla.

Italy is scheduled to host Israel in Udine on October 14. But UEFA is considering suspending Israel over the war. The players were not at the Coverciano training centre in Florence, but the squad will convene there on Monday.

Protesters appeared to behave peacefully on the opposite side of the street from the football complex, holding aloft a banner that read in Italian, “Let’s stop Zionism with the resistance.” A protest leader grabbed a microphone and shouted, “How can you still allow Israel, a Zionist and criminal state, to play football games?”

Dozens of protests have erupted across Italy since Wednesday night, after the Israeli navy intercepted the Global Sumud Flotilla, detaining its activists.

On Friday, workers and students took to the streets after the country’s largest unions called for a one-day general strike in solidarity with the Palestinians and the flotilla. Hundreds of trains were cancelled or delayed, as were several domestic flights, and many private and public schools closed.

The Italian Football Coaches’ Association (AIAC) pushed in August for Israel to be suspended from international competition for its war on Gaza.

PRO-Palestinians have hit the streets of Manchester to protest against Greta Thunberg’s flotilla detention.

It comes just hours after the vile terror attack on Manchester‘s Heaton Park synagogue, which unfolded on the holiest day of the Jewish calendar.

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Protesters were marching at Manchester Piccadilly station today in solidarity with the members of Global Sumud Flotilla – a fleet of 40 ships carrying humanitarian aid to Gaza.

The Israeli navy intercepted several vessels at sea beginning Wednesday, after warning activists against entering waters it says fall under its blockade.

As the nation mourned the sick terror attack against the Jewish community – which killed two people – protesters marched through the streets of Manchester.

Hundreds of them gathered outside the Manchester Piccadilly Station banging drums and chanting slogans against the Israeli authorities. 

They were seen waving Palestine flags and holding placards that read “Freedom for Palestine” and “Stop starving Gaza”.

Organisers of the protest said they “condemned in the strongest possible terms” the attack in Heaton Park – and called for a minute’s silence in respect for the victims.

Another protest took place in Parliament Square as activists gathered to demonstrate against Israeli authorities.

The protest sparked fury, including from Conservative MP Susan Hall, who described it as “disgraceful, disrespectful, despicable behaviour”.

The demonstrations come in the wake of today’s vile Manchester attack.

An assailant drove a car into people outside a synagogue and then began stabbing them, killing two and seriously wounding four in what police called a terrorist attack on the holiest day of the Jewish year.

Officers shot and killed the suspect outside Manchester, police said.

Authorities said he was wearing a vest that made it appear as if he had explosives. Police later said he did not have a bomb.

The Metropolitan Police force in London, which leads the nation’s counter-terrorism policing operations, declared the rampage a terrorist attack.

Israel slammed the UK government for not doing enough and warned that antisemitism is on the rise after the vile synagogue attack.

Tel Aviv said British authorities “failed” to tackle the “toxic wave of antisemitism” which led to the terror rampage.

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar said: “I am appalled by the murderous attack near the Heaton Park Synagogue in Manchester on the morning of the holiest day for the Jewish people: Yom Kippur.

“The truth must be told: blatant and rampant antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement, as well as calls of support for terror, have recently become a widespread phenomenon in the streets of London, in cities across Britain, and on its campuses.

“The authorities in Britain have failed to take the necessary action to curb this toxic wave of antisemitism and have effectively allowed it to persist.”

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said his country “grieves with the Jewish community in the UK” after this morning‘s “barbaric terror attack” in Manchester.

“Our hearts are with the families of the murdered, and we pray for the swift recovery of the wounded,” he said on X.

“As I warned at the UN: weakness in the face of terrorism only brings more terrorism. Only strength and unity can defeat it.”

Sir Keir – who cut short his trip to Denmark and rushed back to chair a Cobra meeting – condemned antisemitism and said that Britain “must defeat it once again”.

Speaking from Downing Street, the PM blasted the “terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews”, committed by “a vile individual”.

Sir Keir said: “Earlier today, on Yom Kippur, the holiest day for the Jewish community, a vile individual committed a terrorist attack that attacked Jews because they are Jews, and attacked Britain because of our values.

“So many Jewish families first came to this country as a place of refuge, fleeing the greatest evil ever inflicted on a people, and Britain welcomed them.

“Communities like the one attacked in Manchester provided safety, but also the security that comes from a promise that this is a country that stands up to hatred and that we don’t just provide refuge, we provide a home.”

Starmer said the Jewish community in Britain will see a “more visible police presence” as he promised to do “everything in my power to guarantee you the security that you deserve”.

Protests spread in Europe

Thousands of people marched through the streets of Barcelona today to denounce Israel’s interception of a pro-Palestinian aid flotilla bound for Gaza.

Columns of demonstrators, many waving Palestinian flags, converged on the central Plaza de les Drassanes from multiple parts of Spain‘s second-largest city.

Protesters chanted slogans including “Gaza, you are not alone,” “Boycott Israel,” and “Freedom for Palestine.”

Other protests were reported in other Spanish cities tonight, including Madrid, Valencia, and Bilbao.

Thousands also gathered in Italy on Thursday in support of the Gaza aid flotilla ahead of a strike in solidarity with activists.

As dusk fell in Rome, several thousand protesters gathered near the Colosseum in solidarity with the flotilla and against Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni‘s support of Israel — a day after a similar protest on Wednesday evening.

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Footage showed Israeli forces boarding the boats and detaining activists, including Greta Thunberg, as they headed for war-ravaged Gaza.

In video footage, Greta Thunberg can be seen being detained, as well as onboard vision of the flotilla at the time of the interception.

In a statement posted to the social media platform X, the Israeli Foreign Ministry said: “several vessels of the Hamas-Sumud flotilla have been safely stopped and their passengers are being transferred to an Israeli port”.

“Greta and her friends are safe and healthy”.

In a second post, the ministry shared two images of the flotilla activists, saying: “Hamas-Sumud passengers on their yachts are making their way safely and peacefully to Israel, where their deportation procedures to Europe will begin”.

“The passengers are safe and in good health,” the post ended.

Activists can be seen with life jackets on, holding their hands up in the surrender position.

Yesterday, members of the Global Sumud Flotilla reported army personnel jumped onboard and “illegally intercepted” their journey just hours after they were circled by a warship.

The humanitarian convoy was attempting to get essential aid, including baby formula and medication, to Gaza.

The Global Sumud Flotilla is made up of more than 40 civilian boats carrying an estimated 500 parliamentarians, lawyers and activists, including Thunberg.

On Wednesday, Israel’s ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said the activists aboard the flotilla will be deported once the Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur ends on Thursday.

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A pro-Palestine activist has interrupted the United Kingdom’s Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves’ speech during the annual Labour Party conference in Liverpool to call out the country’s ongoing complicity in Israel’s genocidal war in Gaza.

The protester, later named as Sam P, stood up less than 10 minutes into the finance minister’s speech, holding a large Palestinian flag and asking, “Why is Britain still arming Israel?”

“Labour is complicit in the mass starvation of Palestinians,” he added.

In response to the protest, Reeves told delegates, “We understand your cause and we are recognising a Palestinian state.

“But we are now a party in government, not a party of protest,” Reeves added, receiving a standing ovation from those in the audience.

But in a statement from the Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM), which planned the disruption for London for a Free Palestine, the group called on the ruling Labour Party to impose a “full two-way arms embargo on Israel”.

“The end of RAF surveillance flights over Gaza that gather intelligence for Israel … The immediate resignation of Labour Party leadership for lying to the public about Britain’s complicity in enabling Israel’s genocide … [and] an end to Britain’s diplomatic ties with Israel,” the statement read.

In May, PYM released a report that found that the British government had continued to send military exports to Israel despite the UK announcing that it had cut arms export licences to Israel that could be used during the war.

Nihal, an organiser with PYM, said the action was taken because the “horror in Gaza is only growing as Palestinian people are experiencing the most violent bombardment since the beginning of the genocide.

“Tens of thousands of Palestinians have already been starved, bombed, and killed while the Labour Party approves weapons licences, shares intelligence, and offers diplomatic cover for these crimes,” they added.

Leila, an organiser with London for a Free Palestine, added that they were “watching the end of the Labour Party”, traditionally once a party of the left which has veered centre-right on many issues.

“Despite the UN Commission of Inquiry declaring Israel is enacting genocide, the Labour government still continues to deny the genocide and offer diplomatic support for Israel’s crimes,” Leila said.

Earlier in September, the UK officially recognised Palestinian statehood in a landmark decision, 108 years after the Balfour Declaration in 1917, which supported the establishment of a home for Jews in Palestine, and 77 years after the creation of Israel in the British Mandate of Palestine.

While the recognition was welcomed by Palestinian officials, for those suffering Israeli atrocities in Gaza, the announcement had no material effect to ease their daily horrors.

In nearly two years of intense Israeli bombardment, and now a ground invasion of Gaza City, the destroyed enclave’s largest urban centre, at least 66,055 people have been killed and 168,346 wounded, Gaza’s Ministry of Health reported on Monday.

Hundreds of thousands of people in the UK have protested, often weekly, against Israel’s war in the last two years and feel their voices have not been heard by the government.

There have also been a series of largely peaceful rallies denouncing the UK government’s decision in July to ban the Palestine Action group under the Terrorism Act 2000, which have been met by a heavy-handed police response and mass arrests.

As many as 100,000 people in Berlin rallied in support of Palestinians in what was Germany’s largest Gaza protest to date. The demonstration, dubbed ‘All Eyes on Gaza’, demanded an end to German support for Israel. Police were filmed violently arresting participants.

Palestinian activist Saeed Taji Farouky, of Defend Our Juries, says UK free speech is under threat after dawn raids on activist Paddy Friend and others. He warns that peaceful campaigners face terror charges over holding Zoom calls.

Pro-Palestine demonstrators have repeatedly targeted the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team during the race in Spain.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrations in Madrid have forced the abandonment of the Vuelta a Espana cycling race’s final stage, with Danish rider Jonas Vingegaard declared the overall winner as police fought with protesters.

Demonstrators blocked sections of the race route in the Spanish capital on Sunday, moving past metal barriers and stepping out onto the road. Police deployed in large numbers, but the race was abandoned.

Organisers confirmed the suspension of the event. “The race is over,” a spokesperson told Reuters.

Spanish authorities said that 100,000 pro-Palestinian protesters took to the streets of Madrid on Sunday.

The protests have repeatedly targeted the Israel-Premier Tech cycling team, owned by Israeli-Canadian property developer Sylvan Adams, over Israel’s war on Palestinians in Gaza.

Adams, the president of the Israel region of the World Jewish Congress, is referred to by that organisation as “committed to promoting Israel’s global image”.

Demonstrations disrupted multiple stages in recent weeks, with some riders threatening to quit after blockades caused falls on the course.

In Bilbao, stage 11 of the race was neutralised with no winner declared after protesters blocked the approach to the finish last week, while on Tuesday, hundreds of demonstrators forced stage 16 in Galicia to be shortened after confronting police near the route.

More than 1,000 police officers were deployed on Sunday in Madrid to secure the finale of the 21-day race in Madrid, which had been scheduled to finish at 7pm (17:00 GMT).

While race organisers denied they were considering cancelling earlier stages, they had suggested Israel-Premier Tech withdraw to protect the safety of other teams.

The participation of Israel-Premier Tech has drawn widespread criticism in Spain, where support for the Palestinian cause is strong.

Lily Mayers, a freelance journalist, told Al Jazeera: “This afternoon, thousands of protesters gathered … with flags and banners in support of Palestine. At around 6.30pm [16:30 GMT], crowds flooded onto the street, pushing down the barriers and clashing with police quite dramatically.

“Police in response used tear gas on protesters to push them back.”

The Spanish government this week recalled its ambassador from Tel Aviv and barred two far-right Israeli ministers from entering the country, while it officially recognised a Palestinian state last year.

Sports Minister Pilar Alegria has previously argued that Israeli teams should be banned from international competitions, similar to restrictions imposed on Russian teams following Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. She said allowing them to compete showed a “double standard”.

Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has publicly praised Israel-Premier Tech for continuing in the race despite the protests.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also voiced support for the pro-Palestine protesters. Speaking at a Socialist Party rally in Malaga on Sunday, he said: “Today marks the end of the Vuelta.”

“Our respect and recognition [is] for the athletes and our admiration for the Spanish people who are mobilising for just causes like Palestine,” he said. “Spain today shines as an example and as a source of pride, an example to an international community where it sees Spain taking a step forward in the defence of human rights.”

Police arrested about 425 people at a demonstration in support of Palestine Action in the United Kingdom, in the latest round of detentions of its supporters since the pro-Palestinian group was banned by the government as a “terrorist” organisation.

Defend Our Juries, the organising campaign, estimated 1,500 people joined the London demonstration on Saturday, assembling with placards stating “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”.

Police immediately began detentions while crowds chanted “Shame on you” and “Met Police, pick a side, justice or genocide”. Confrontations intensified as officers removed nonresistant protesters who became passive during arrest.

Following the eight-hour protest, authorities confirmed more than 425 arrests, with at least 25 people facing charges of assaulting officers or public order violations, while the remainder were held under the Terrorism Act.

The UK-based PA Media reported that police drew their batons during the clashes, and one protester was seen with blood streaming down his face behind a barrier after being arrested.

The agency also reported that police had screaming arguments with demonstrators and had water and plastic bottles thrown at them while several protesters fell over in a crush at one point.

Deputy Assistant Commissioner Claire Smart said, “In carrying out their duties today, our officers have been punched, kicked, spat on, and had objects thrown at them by protesters.” She described the treatment as “intolerable”.

Defend Our Juries disputed the narrative, asserting that police initiated the aggression and calling claims of protester violence “frankly laughable”.

Earlier, related demonstrations had resulted in more than 700 arrests, of which 138 individuals were charged under the Terrorism Act.

Mike Higgins, a 62-year-old blind wheelchair user previously arrested at a protest, returned to demonstrate on Saturday.

“And I’m a terrorist? That’s the joke of it,” he said. “I’ve already been arrested under the Terrorism Act, and I suspect I will be today.

“Of course I’ll keep coming back. What choice do I have?”

The United Nations human rights chief has criticised the British government’s approach, stating the new law “misuses the gravity and impact of terrorism”.

The classification of Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation “raises serious concerns that counterterrorism laws are being applied to conduct that is not terrorist in nature, and risks hindering the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms across the UK”, Volker Turk warned.

He further noted that by international standards, “terrorist” acts should be limited to crimes such as those intended to cause death or serious injury or the taking of hostages.

Huda Ammori, Palestine Action’s cofounder, denounced the government’s ban as “catastrophic” for civil liberties, creating a “much wider chilling effect on freedom of speech”.

The organisation has received support from notable cultural figures, including bestselling Irish author Sally Rooney, who stated she planned to use the proceeds of her work “to keep backing Palestine Action and direct action against genocide”.

Israel strongly rejects accusations of committing genocide, though numerous countries, rights groups and scholars have confirmed it is carrying out a clear and systematic genocide of Palestinians in Gaza.

The government emphasised that designating Palestine Action as a “terrorist” group does not impact other lawful organisations — including pro-Palestinian or pro-Israel voices — campaigning or peacefully protesting.

A separate pro-Palestinian march in London on Saturday attracted approximately 20,000 participants, according to police estimates.

The proposed settlement is the highest yet, as Trump continues pressure universities to submit to wide-ranging demands.

The administration of United States President Donald Trump has requested that the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), submit to a $1bn settlement to resolve accusations stemming from the school’s handling of pro-Palestine protests.

A White House official and the University of California system both confirmed the proposed settlement to news agencies on Friday.

The settlement proposal is notable for the massive sum requested, as the Trump administration seeks to pressure top schools into compliance with its policies.

The $1bn price tag would far exceed the payouts inked in previous agreements reached with Columbia University and Brown University last month. Columbia agreed to pay a fine of about $221m, and Brown confirmed it would pay $50m to a state workforce development programme.

“The University of California just received a document from the Department of Justice and is reviewing it,” University of California President James Milliken said in a statement.

He added that the institution had offered to have talks with the government earlier this week.

UCLA, which boasts the largest student body in the University of California system, had also announced this week that the Trump administration suspended $584m in federal grants to the school.

The Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division explained that the funding would be frozen as a result of civil rights violations connected to pro-Palestinian protests since 2023. The school had acted “with deliberate indifference in creating a hostile educational environment for Jewish and Israeli students”, it said.

Free-speech advocates, however, have accused the Trump administration of willfully conflating pro-Palestine and antiwar advocacy with anti-Semitism in order to silence protesters.

Last month, UCLA reached a $6m settlement with three Jewish students and a Jewish professor who claimed their civil rights were violated by pro-Palestinian protesters blocking their access to class and other areas on campus during a 2024 protest encampment.

It was not immediately clear why the $1bn settlement sought by the Trump administration was so high.

UCLA is also the first publicly funded university to face a potential grant freeze from the Trump administration. In his statement, Milliken said the payment would have wide-ranging consequences.

“As a public university, we are stewards of taxpayer resources, and a payment of this scale would completely devastate our country’s greatest public university system as well as inflict great harm on our students and all Californians,” he said.

Civil liberties organisations have also underscored that students at publicly funded universities are typically afforded wider constitutional protections while on campus.

That stands in contrast to private institutions, where students are generally subject to whatever restrictions on speech are outlined by administrators in their enrollment agreement.

The First Amendment of the US Constitution restricts the government’s ability to limit free speech. Any future agreement between the University of California system and the Trump administration might face a legal challenge, should it be perceived to trample on free-speech rights.

Speaking on Thursday, California Governor Gavin Newsom, who has been one of Trump’s most vocal Democratic opponents, urged the state’s university officials not to kowtow to the administration’s demands.

“We’re not Brown, we’re not Columbia, and I’m not going to be governor if we act like that,” Newsom said, according to the Los Angeles Times. “Period. Full stop. I will fight like hell to make sure that doesn’t happen.”

British police have announced that the weekend performances by rap-punk duo Bob Vylan and the Irish-language band Kneecap at the Glastonbury Festival are subject to a criminal investigation after they led crowds in chants calling for “death” to the Israeli military and a “free Palestine”.

Police on Monday said the performances at the United Kingdom’s largest summer music festival “have been recorded as a public order incident”.

Rapper Bobby Vylan, who until the weekend was relatively unknown, led crowds in chants of “free, free Palestine” and “death, death” to the Israeli military.

The BBC said it regretted livestreaming the performance and it should have pulled it off the air.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer and other UK politicians condemned the chants, saying there was no excuse for such “appalling hate speech”. Starmer added that the BBC must explain “how these scenes came to be broadcast”.

Ofcom, the broadcasting regulator, said it was “very concerned” about the BBC livestream and said the broadcaster “clearly has questions to answer”.

Meanwhile, the United States Department of State said it has revoked the visas for Bob Vylan to perform in the US after its “hateful tirade at Glastonbury”.

“Foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country,” US Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said in a social media post.

Israel’s genocidal assault in Gaza has inflamed tensions around the world, triggering pro-Palestinian protests in many capitals and on college campuses. Israel and some of its supporters have described the protests as anti-Semitic while critics said Israel uses such descriptions to silence its opponents.

While maintaining a crippling siege on the bombarded enclave, Israeli forces have killed at least 56,531 people and wounded 133,642, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Health.

Bob Vylan, known for mixing grime and punk rock, tackles a range of issues in its lyrics, including racism, homophobia and the class divide, and has previously voiced support for Palestinians.

Its lead vocalist, who goes by the stage name Bobby Vylan, appeared to refer to the weekend performance in a post on Instagram, writing: “I said what I said.”

“Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place,” he added.

The duo played Saturday afternoon right before Kneecap, whose set was not livestreamed by the BBC but still found a huge online audience via TikTok. It is another band that has drawn controversy previously over its strongly pro-Palestine stance.

Kneecap led a crowd of tens of thousands in chants of “Free Palestine” at the festival. It also aimed an expletive-laden chant at Starmer, who had said he didn’t think it was “appropriate” for Kneecap to play Glastonbury after one of its members was charged under the Terrorism Act.

Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who is also known as Liam O’Hanna and performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was charged with supporting a proscribed organisation for allegedly waving a Hezbollah flag at a concert in London last year.

Israel has faced sustained international opprobrium for the conduct of its war in Gaza. Weekly protests draw thousands of people around Europe and across the world in support of Palestinians.

Public pressure, in part, seemed to prompt the Israeli allies France, Canada and the UK to issue a sharply worded statement in May calling for Israel to stop its “egregious” military actions in Gaza and criticising Israel’s actions in the occupied West Bank.

Pro-Palestine activists rallied outside Wimbledon on the first day of the tennis championships in London to protest tournament sponsorship by Barclays Bank, who they say helps to finance Israel’s war on Gaza. Barclays says it is not a ‘shareholder’ or ‘investor’ in defence companies supplying Israel.

Mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has bold plans for New York City. He wants to establish city-owned grocery stores, build more homes, make buses free and freeze rents for subsidised tenants.

But in the lead-up to the Democratic primary on Tuesday, his opponents and media outlets seemed more concerned by his views on the conflict between Israel and Palestine. He is a defender of Palestinian rights who has decried Israeli abuses and echoed the assessment of rights groups that Israel’s assault on Gaza is a genocide.

Mamdani did not back down from his positions, and he won, edging out former Governor Andrew Cuomo, who had more institutional support and was backed by record spending.

Mamdani’s supporters say his victory could be an inflection point in United States politics that shows the electoral viability of left-wing policies and support for Palestinian rights.

“It’s monumental,” said Usamah Andrabi, spokesperson for the progressive group Justice Democrats.

“The sky is the limit for true progressives who are willing to unite the working class against billionaires and corporate super PACs while still refusing to compromise on issues as large as a genocide.”

While the official results are not yet final, Mamdani leads Cuomo by more than seven percentage points with nearly every vote counted, all but securing the nomination.

His lead is expected to grow with subsequent rounds of counting in the city’s ranked-choice voting system.

Cuomo has conceded defeat, and Mamdani has declared victory, putting him on the path to be the next mayor of the largest city in the US.

New York is overwhelmingly Democratic, so as the party’s nominee, he is likely to comfortably prevail in the general election in November — an outcome that seemed impossible when he was polling at 1 percent in February.

‘He refused to back down’

Savvy with digital media, charismatic and approachable, Mamdani — a 33-year-old state legislator — started to grow his base with viral videos and grassroots campaigning on the streets of New York.

After the presidential election in November of last year, Mamdani spoke to Donald Trump’s supporters and non-voters, who voiced frustration with status quo politics. He then presented them with his own platform. In a video segment he filmed, some of them said they would back him for mayor.

Mamdani’s supporters say he also excelled in amassing an army of thousands of volunteers, who knocked on doors to spread the word about his campaign.

Heba Gowayed, a sociology professor at the City University of New York (CUNY), said many young people were drawn to Mamdani and got involved in his campaign because of his opposition to Israeli policies.

“The fact that he refused to back down from his position on Palestine is huge,” Gowayed told Al Jazeera. “In an atmosphere where we’ve been told that holding that position is politically disqualifying, it was a movement that not only insisted on this position but was, in a sense, predicated on it.”

She added that, if Mamdani had flipped to appease critics, he would have lost the support and enthusiasm that put him over the finish line. But Mamdani’s support for Palestinian “likely bolstered his campaign”, she said.

Mamdani faced seemingly insurmountable odds in his campaign for the Democratic nomination. Not only did he lack funding early on, but his name recognition was also low. Few voters seemed to know who he was, compared with the candidate he was running against: Cuomo, a former governor from a political dynasty in New York.

Cuomo’s father had also served as governor, and in the lead-up to Tuesday’s race, he had amassed endorsements from key figures in the national Democratic Party, including former President Bill Clinton and lawmaker Jim Clyburn.

Mamdani, meanwhile, was endorsed by the local branch of the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA).

That is what makes Mamdani’s win stunning for his supporters. It appeared to be a David and Goliath battle, a clash of the old guard and the new.

“The old guard personified was beaten by a democratic socialist, a young, pro-Palestinian brown Muslim kid who had 1 percent name recognition as of February,” Gowayed said. “It is absolutely phenomenal and remarkable.”

Born in Uganda to parents of Indian descent, Mamdani has been serving in the state assembly since 2021.

Many viewed the face-off between Cuomo and Mamdani as a reflection of the years-long arm-wrestling between progressives and centrists in the Democratic Party. The debate over Palestinian rights and the US’s unquestioning support for Israel has been a core issue in that fight.

Cuomo’s focus on Israel

As a state legislator, Mamdani had been vocal in his opposition to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which has killed at least 56,077 Palestinians. He even led a hunger strike outside the White House in November 2023 to demand an end to the war.

But as he launched his campaign for mayor, his focus was on local issues.

Still, Cuomo — who resigned as governor in 2021 over sexual harassment allegations — tried to make Mamdani’s position on Israel and Palestine a central issue in the campaign.

Earlier this month, the former governor suggested that calling out Israeli abuses contributes to attacks against Jewish Americans. The target of his message appeared to be Mamdani.

“Hate foments hate. The anti-Israel rhetoric of ‘genocide,’ ‘war criminals,’ and ‘murderers’ must stop. It is spreading like a cancer through the body politic,” Cuomo said in a social media post after a fire attack injured 15 people at a pro-Israel rally in Colorado.

The former governor is part of the defence team representing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes charges in Gaza, including the use of starvation as a weapon of war.

When Mamdani and some of his fellow candidates, including City Comptroller Brad Lander, campaigned jointly against Cuomo, the former governor invoked Israel.

“How does … a Brad Lander support Zohran Mamdani, support his positions on Israel, support his statements on Israel?” Cuomo said.

Lander, who is Jewish, went on to cross-endorse Mamdani, and the two candidates encouraged their supporters to rank them both highly on their ballots.

A pro-Cuomo election group, known as a super PAC, has also focused on Mamdani’s positions on the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Dubbed Fix the City, the super PAC received $500,000 from pro-Israel billionaire and Trump supporter Bill Ackman. Former New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, another staunch Israel supporter, contributed a whopping $8m to the group.

Media outlets also scrutinised Mamdani’s view on Israel. He was repeatedly asked about foreign policy, including whether Israel has a right to exist as a Jewish state and whether he would visit Israel as mayor.

‘A turning point’

Beth Miller, the political director of the advocacy group Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) Action, said Cuomo miscalculated by trying to make the race about Mamdani’s views on the Middle East conflict.

The Democratic base has been increasingly moving away from unconditional support for Israel, especially amid the atrocities in Gaza. A Pew Research Center survey in April showed that 69 percent of Democratic respondents indicated unfavourable views towards Israel.

“Cuomo is part of an old dinosaur way of thinking about politics,” Miller told Al Jazeera.

JVP Action endorsed Mamdani at the outset of his campaign. Miller said that, while his campaign was rooted in making New York affordable, his progressive politics are based on upholding the humanity of all people, including Palestinians.

“Cuomo was counting on the idea that Zohran’s support for Palestinian rights would be a liability for him, but what last night showed was that that’s not true,” Miller said.

“And in fact, what I witnessed and what I saw was that his support for Palestinian rights was an asset to his campaign. It mobilised young voters. It mobilised a lot of progressive Jewish voters and Muslim voters and many, many others.”

In recent years, pro-Israel groups, including the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), have poured record amounts of money into Democratic primaries to defeat progressives.

In the last election cycle, they managed to help oust two Democratic Congress members who were critical of Israel: Jamaal Bowman and Cori Bush.

Progressive advocates say they hope that Mamdani’s win will help turn the tide in their favour.

“We are finally seeing a turning point,” said Andrabi of Justice Democrats. “AIPAC likes to say supporting Israel is good policy and good politics. I think what has become extremely clear at this point is that supporting apartheid Israel is bad policy and bad politics.”

Thousands of international pro-Palestine activists have been blocked from reaching Egypt’s Rafah border crossing during the Global March to Gaza event, allegedly over security concerns. Scenes of demonstrators being forcefully dispersed and detained have sparked outrage among the organisers.