Cambridge University students relaunch pro-Palestine encampment in solidarity with Gaza

Students at the University of Cambridge have resumed their protest encampment outside Trinity College, renewing calls for the institution to disclose and divest from arms companies said to be complicit in the Gaza genocide.

According to Varsity, Cambridge’s student newspaper, the pro-Palestine activist group Cambridge for Palestine (C4P) officially set up the encampment on Friday to demand that the University divest from investments associated with Israel- citing its nearly two-year military campaign in the Gaza Strip since 7 October 2023.

Varsity reported that student activists occupied the outdoor grounds of Trinity College- one of the University’s largest colleges- to establish the encampment.

Protesters at the site accused the institution of investing in companies involved in military research, including Lockheed Martin, BAE Systems, and Boeing- all of which are listed by the Boycott, Divestment & Sanctions (BDS) Movement, which urges cutting ties with companies linked to Israel and its occupation of Palestinian land.

The renewed protests follow Cambridge’s earlier pledge to review its investment practices by establishing a working group to assess its "responsible investment" policy, prompted by a similar months-long encampment in solidarity with Gaza last year.

In a statement, the C4P group called on the university to end its "complicity in genocide", explaining that the resumption of protests stems from "months of student, faculty, and community frustration" over what it described as the lack of "meaningful progress on divestment" in the arms divestment working group, alongside the implementation of "anti-protest" policies targeting pro-Palestine student activists.

Cambridge student activists previously claimed their voices were sidelined within the University’s working group, prompting C4P to establish earlier encampments at Senate House Lawn and Greenwich House- Cambridge’s financial centre- to prevent what they referred to as "stalling negotiations".

According to Varsity, the university temporarily excluded students from arms-related discussions and pursued legal action to block further pro-Palestine encampments, citing disruption to "essential University life".

Cambridge has denied that the injunctions were intended to restrict protest.

C4P has outlined key demands, including full disclosure of the university’s financial ties to companies allegedly involved in Israeli violations of international law, complete divestment from those companies, and reinvestment in Palestinian communities.

The group also urged the University to protect the academic freedom and safety of all Cambridge affiliates and to reverse what it called targeted anti-protest policies that restrict pro-Palestine speech.

In mid-May, King’s College - another major constituent college of the university - announced plans to divest from all arms companies allegedly complicit in Israel’s war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 56,000 people.

The decision followed an open letter backed by hundreds of signatories and a student survey that showed overwhelming support for divestment.

C4P cited King’s College’s move as proof that the wider university can follow suit, expressing hope that its current encampment at Trinity College will achieve similar results.

Last year, prestigious institutions such as Oxford and Cambridge set up encampments in support of Gaza, as 2024 witnessed a wave of student protests across the UK.

The sit-in protests- which mirrored similar actions on US campuses- also spread to other UK universities, including Manchester, Leeds, Bristol, Sheffield, and Newcastle.

International critics- including some of Israel’s allies- have condemned the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where the United Nations warns the entire population faces famine following an aid blockade lasting more than two months.

According to Gaza’s Health Ministry, at least 4,117 Palestinians have been killed since Israel resumed its offensive on 18 March, bringing the total death toll to 54,381- mostly civilians.