On the 19th of October, a small group of protestors gathered outside the Radcliffe Camera Library and Sheldonian Theatre. One first year student, Abel, interrupted the Vice Chancellor, Irene Tracey, while she was speaking at the matriculation ceremony. 

Abel told The Oxford Blue that he spoke at the ceremony after waiting to see what the Vice Chancellor had to say. Had she acknowledged that the University had made a mistake with its policy on Palestine, Abel said that he would not have interjected. But as Irene Tracey was discussing the importance of free speech while failing to mention how the University had suppressed the voice of Oxford Action for Palestine (OA4P), he felt like he “had to speak up”. According to Abel, other students had laughed when Irene Tracey had said Oxford promotes “debate and different values” (arguing that they hadn’t for OA4P). 

Whilst talking to Abel some students expressed their support for his actions, holding Palestinian flags (distributed by OA4P) while other newly-matriculated students asked for a group photo with Abel. Meanwhile, one matriculating undergraduate at the ceremony said that the protester sounded nervous, struggling to get his words out while laughter came from the crowd when security took him out of the building. Having refused to leave, Abel says two security officers forced him out of the Sheldonian Theatre, grabbing and pushing him out the room. He recounted that at one moment he nearly lost his balance as he was approaching the stairs, stating that the security officers didn’t care about his safety and he “didn’t expect them to”. 

Abel claims the university was a “complete pariah” in terms of how they treated the protests. He noted that some OA4P protestors had received fines, were prevented from attending graduation ceremonies, or had been subjected to lengthy disciplinary proceedings where they were berated and shouted at. In response to the claim – that this action was potentially just “virtue signalling” – he acknowledged that any Palestinians currently suffering from occupation could criticise him for not doing enough. He noted, however, that most of these criticisms would come from people “sitting on the sidelines”, who, according to Abel, should do more rather than just simply undermine others. 

On his motivations for protesting, Abel told the Oxford Blue that the treatment of three Palestinians (Afnan Abu Hussein, Hanan Abd Alrahman Abu Salama, Sha’ban al-Dalou) this week had particularly been weighing on his mind. Sha’ban al-Dalou was an engineering student who, having survived an Israeli strike on a mosque on the 6th of October, was burned alive this week on the 14th of October after Israel struck his camp. Abel also noted the Vice-Chancellor’s recent meeting with the Israeli Ambassador (as reported by the Oxford Student). He alluded to the University’s secrecy on the topic, suggesting that it was wrong for any British university to be in talks with the ambassador of a genocidal state also responsible for killing 3 British nationals. Abel also mentioned to another student that while he was not an Oxford Union member, he wanted to get involved in the planned debate about Israel-Palestine.  

The Oxford Blue also spoke to other OA4P protestors who were standing outside the Sheldonian Theatre. They said that their demands have stayed the same concerning  the University. One protester did, however, comment on their appreciation of the University’s work to expand scholarships, although they expressed discontent with the scheme given its insignificance relative to the loss of life in Gaza.

The protestor went on, claiming that the University of Oxford continues to support the ongoing genocide since the Oxford University Endowment fund has links with BlackRock and ties to banks such as Barclays (which have ties to Israeli companies like Elbit). When asked about current events (such as the murder of Yahya Sinwar), the protestors recognised that OA4P did not seek to be “geopolitical commentators” as they continued to only demand Palestinian liberation, self-determination and the right of return. However, a protester told The Oxford Blue that the Israeli invasion of Lebanon constituted a “genocidal campaign” against the territory of another sovereign nation. They argued that the Israeli invasion is motivated by land expansion and not self defence. 

Outside the Sheldonian Theatre, the protestors said that they had no negative experience with security and were not staying anonymous because they were worried about a “university backlash”. They also noted that the University is moving the goalposts over what is deemed legitimate protests (as they attempted and failed to change the rules to make protest more difficult). However, The recent “clarification of the regulation about protest” meant that the number of days someone has to give notice to the proctor to protest has increased from seven to twenty days. The protests acknowledged the possibility of university retaliation and noted how one student had been released from university employment (and subsequently denied housing) because of their involvement in the protests. The protests were tight-lipped when asked about the possibility of further actions (though they did note OA4P presence at the Freshers’ Fair) and the amount of planning involved in this protest). However, the protestors asked all university students to pressure their colleges and departments and remind themselves that – “after choosing to attend an exceptionally prestigious university” – they should want to attend a university they could be proud of. “It is impossible to be proud of a university that bankrolls genocide”, they said. When asked about the upcoming Oxford Chancellor election, the protester said they can’t speak for the group over any endorsements, but they wanted a candidate that would be willing to endorse their demands.