The Junior Common Room (JCR) – a representative student body within the University of Oxford – has passed an unprecedented motion condemning recent actions by Israel, the University of Oxford’s student newspaper, the Oxford Student, said in a statement on Sunday.
According to the motion, the JCR suggested this move in recognition of recent developments, like the murder of the Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh at the hands of Israeli occupation forces, which has “led to widespread outcry”. The Al-Jazeera journalist was shot fatally in the head on May 11, while she reported on Israeli military attacks on the West Bank.
Exeter College’s Junior Common Room (JCR) has recently passed an unprecedented motion resolving to display a Palestinian flag in the JCR, and has moved to donate funds in support of medical aid for Palestinians. pic.twitter.com/wzz33qFweQ
— V PALESTINE 🇵🇸 (@V_Palestine20) June 19, 2022
The JCR of Exeter College, one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England, pointed to the fact that Human Rights Watch has stated that “Palestinians face systematic discrimination merely because of their race, ethnicity, and national origin” and that Amnesty International has “declared Israel an Apartheid state.”
The motion was also pushed on the basis that the situation seemed to be escalating, stating that “Israel has killed five times as many Palestinians in 2022 than it killed in the same period in 2021, including the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque that injured over 150 Palestinians.”
Way to go Oxford. Positive solidarity. #ApartheidIsrael https://t.co/6b9J8WPzto
— Dianne Woodward (@WoodwarddianneJ) June 16, 2022
On this basis, the JCR expressed a desire to show support and solidarity, saying that the college “should do whatever possible to show solidarity with Palestine amidst this international crisis” and also “should similarly ensure that Palestinian students, and students who identify with the Palestinian cause in Oxford, feel adequately supported by the college.”
Following these intentions, the JCR resolved to buy a Palestine flag for display in the JCR and donate funds in support of medical aid for Palestinians.
(WAFA, PC, Social Media)
