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LONDON: One of the UK’s most prestigious defense academies has banned Israelis from enrolling in its program due to Tel Aviv’s military actions in the Gaza Strip, which some EU officials have recently described as genocidal acts.

Starting next year, the Royal College of Defence Studies will not be accepting students from Israel, the UK government confirmed on Sunday.

The college has promoted understanding among military officers, diplomats, civil servants, and officials for almost a century. Each year, about 110 members from the UK and abroad join its program. Notable alumni include Field Marshall Alan Francis Brooke and former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf.

According to The Telegraph, the college’s postgraduate course in international strategic studies focuses on “political, diplomatic, security, social and economic issues at the grand strategic level — the level at which governments take decisions on these issues both nationally and within the international community.”

However, its main course is “practical rather than theoretical.”

The exclusion of Israelis from the college is the first since its establishment in 1927, and it comes as the latest punitive measure against Israel taken by the UK government over its massacres in Gaza.

A spokesman for the Ministry of Defence said that British military educational courses are open to personnel from various countries, emphasizing adherence to international humanitarian law.

He added: “However, the Israeli government’s decision to further escalate its military operation in Gaza is wrong.

“There must be a diplomatic solution to end this war now, with an immediate ceasefire, the return of the hostages and a surge in humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.”

The UK government banned Israeli officials from attending the UK’s largest arms exhibition last week.

It also pledged to recognize Palestinian statehood in the UN General Assembly later this month, unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in the Palestinian coastal enclave of Gaza and commits to not annexing the West Bank.

In August, Israeli forces launched a new military campaign to occupy Gaza City and its surrounding areas, where approximately 1 million Palestinians live and seek shelter. Forces launched dozens of airstrikes targeting high-rise buildings in the city, resulting in the deaths and injuries of hundreds of people, and the displacement of nearly 250,000 others.

On Friday, 142 countries at the UN General Assembly voted for a resolution supporting “tangible, time-bound, and irreversible steps” toward a two-state solution. On Sept. 23, the annual general debate at the assembly will begin, with French President Emmanuel Macron expected to recognize the state of Palestine.

LONDON: Prime Minister Keir Starmer said Sunday Britain would not tolerate people feeling intimidated “because of their background or the color of their skin” after a large far-right protest was marked by battles with police.
In his first comments on Saturday’s rally organized by far-right activist Tommy Robinson and attended by up to 150,000 people, according to police, Starmer also condemned attacks on police on officers.
The clashes left 26 officers injured, four seriously, and led to 24 arrests. London police have pledged to make more arrests in coming days.
“People have a right to peaceful protest. It is core to our country’s values,” Starmer said on X, the day after the protesters massed near his Downing Street office amid a sea of English and British flags.
“But we will not stand for assaults on police officers doing their job or for people feeling intimidated on our streets because of their background or the color of their skin.”
The leader of the center-left Labour government, who was the target of persistent criticism at the rally, added “Britain is a nation proudly built on tolerance, diversity and respect.”
“Our flag represents our diverse country and we will never surrender it to those that use it as a symbol of violence, fear and division,” Starmer said.
London’s Metropolitan Police said it had so far arrested 24 people after officers faced “unacceptable violence” trying to control up to 150,000 people at the event.
That was two fewer arrests than the force last reported, after discovering what it called “two duplicate records.”
Twenty-six police were injured, four seriously, in clashes on the fringes of Robinson’s “Unite the Kingdom” rally.
Of those arrested, three were women and 21 were men, with the oldest person arrested aged 58 and the youngest 19 years-old, according to police.
It said alleged offenses included common assault, criminal damage, assault on an emergency worker, and possession of an offensive weapon, noting a number of people were arrested on suspicion of more than one offense.
“A post-event investigation is under way, with officers working to identify other people involved in disorder with a view to making further arrests in the coming days and weeks,” the force added.
The attacks on police occurred after some activists tried to enter sealed off areas near counter-protesters at a Stand Up to Racism march which had ended close by, according to the Met.
Officers were “assaulted with kicks and punches” while “bottles, flares and other projectiles were thrown,” it said.
Protesters at Robinson’s event had marched over Westminster Bridge before rallying near Downing Street for speeches by figures associated with the far right from across Europe and North America, including billionaire tycoon Elon Musk.
In an address by video, the X owner called for the dissolution of Britain’s parliament and the replacement of the center-left Labour government while claiming “violence is coming to you.”
“You either fight back or you die,” he told the crowds.
Assessing the speeches and attendees, anti-racism charity Hope Not Hate called the event Britain’s largest ever far-right protest.
“Seeing such a big crowd cheering speeches that called for banning all public expression of non-Christian religions, demanded the ‘remigration’ of legal migrants... and claimed Britain is being ‘invaded’ and its population ‘replaced’ is unprecedented,” it said.
“For anyone worried about the rise of far-right activism and the normalization of viciously anti-migrant, anti-Muslim sentiment, it could be a sign of dark times to come.”