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LONDON: A Palestinian Ph.D student from Gaza who was awarded a University of Glasgow scholarship has described her heartbreak after her family was denied entry to Britain.
Manar Al-Houbi received confirmation of her successful scholarship application in May, The Guardian reported.
Her tuition fees as well as housing and living costs were covered by the tuition and a grant from the Council for At Risk Academics charity.
Al-Houbi completed visa applications for her family, but was told by the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office last month that her family would be denied entry to the UK.
The scholarship “felt almost too good to be true,” the Ph.D student said.
Most international students in the UK are forbidden from bringing dependents with them, but full-time Ph.D students — such as Al-Houbi — are exempt from this rule, and can bring family members to Britain.
David Lammy, the deputy prime minister, said in a recent interview with the BBC, referring to Al-Houbi: “It’s important to understand that we are actually dependent on Israeli permissions to bring those people out, and that has not been easy to get.”
Israeli officials, however, have denied preventing Al-Houbi’s exit from Gaza.
She is now living with her family in a tent in Khan Younis. The family home in Rafah was destroyed by Israeli airstrikes during the early stages of the Israel-Hamas war.
“The fact that the UK government hasn’t even bothered to make a request on my family’s behalf is heartbreaking,” Al-Houbi told The Guardian.
Her Ph.D research is set to focus on using media and education to combat anti-women violence and promote peace efforts.
She hopes to return to Gaza after completing the program to teach and launch social programs.
Al-Houbi is “such an excellent candidate for a scholarship that she was able to pick the scheme that allows her to bring dependents,” said Prof. Alison Phipps, academic supervisor at the University of Glasgow.
“No parent should be forced to choose their studies over their family, not least when this is a firm criterion of the scholarship itself.”
An FCDO spokesperson said: “The government is working with universities to identify eligible students and to assist them to leave Gaza and take up their studies in the UK. This has been a highly complex process, but we have already successfully evacuated a number of students and expect further cohorts to arrive in the coming weeks.”
The first group of Palestinian university students from Gaza arrived in Britain last month after a sustained campaign led by academics and rights groups.
The CEO of the charity that awarded Al-Houbi her scholarship grant said his organization “is ready and waiting to support this family and we call on the UK government to support their evacuation immediately.”

LONDON: The Syrian Arab Republic and Turkiye will collaborate on counterterrorism along their shared border to enhance military cooperation between the two countries.

On Sunday, Syrian Foreign Minister Assaad Hassan Al-Shaibani discussed these issues with Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan, Defense Minister Yasar Guler, and General Intelligence Chief Ibrahim Kalın.

Syria’s Defense Minister Maj. Gen. Murhaf Abu Qasra and General Intelligence Chief Hussein Al-Salama also joined the high-level delegation that visited the Turkish capital, Ankara.

The talks focused on common issues in counterterrorism, border control, enhancing regional stability, and bilateral cooperation. They discussed joint training to improve coordination between Turkiye and Syria, the SANA news agency reported.

“We discussed the joint steps that can be taken to ensure Syria's full security while preserving its territorial integrity,” Fidan wrote on X.

“The Syrian administration possesses the determination and resolve to overcome the challenging trials it faces. We do not view Syria’s security as separate from Turkey’s security,” Fidan added.

Abu Qasra described the meetings with his Turkish defense counterpart and officials as “a significant new milestone” in strengthening cooperation between the two armies. He said in a post on X that such collaboration will “contribute to establishing security and stability in the region.”

Ankara has strengthened its relations with Damascus since December, after the collapse of the Assad regime last year, which was an ally of Iran and opposed Turkiye for supporting rebel groups.