UK universities have warned Prime Minister Keir Starmer that 25 Palestinian students from Gaza risk losing their fully funded scholarships if they are not evacuated by the end of this week.

The students, who secured places at Cambridge, Oxford, Bristol, Exeter, Glasgow, Sussex, and University College London, face losing their academic year if they are not included on evacuation lists scheduled for October 22 and 26. University leaders stressed that delays could mean most of the students, except doctoral candidates who can defer, will forfeit their places until next year.

In a letter to the prime minister, vice-chancellors and presidents of the seven universities also criticized a government policy that bars the students from bringing dependents. They urged ministers to use their discretion to allow families to accompany the students, warning that the current rules force them into an “impossible choice” between pursuing education and leaving loved ones behind in a war zone. Only nine of the students have requested to bring dependents, but officials said even those cases have been blocked.

The letter highlighted the urgency of the situation, noting that some students have been told they must leave behind children as young as three months old to take up their places. University leaders praised the government’s earlier efforts to evacuate scholarship students and its role in ceasefire negotiations but pressed for immediate clarity on evacuation timelines.

UNICEF has scheduled an evacuation through the Kerem Shalom border crossing on October 26, pending approval from the UK’s Foreign Office. Religious leaders have also joined the call for action, with 35 British rabbis and bishops signing a statement urging the government to prioritize compassion over bureaucracy.

The situation underscores the broader humanitarian crisis in Gaza, where students face the devastating choice of abandoning their families or losing life-changing opportunities for higher education abroad. University officials warned that without swift intervention, Britain risks undermining its commitment to supporting education as a pathway to rebuilding war-torn communities.

Tags: Palestinian students UK scholarships, Gaza evacuation UK, Cambridge Oxford Gaza students, UK universities Gaza crisis, Keir Starmer Gaza students, UNICEF Gaza evacuation, Palestinian education abroad, Gaza war scholarships, UK government student evacuation, Gaza humanitarian crisis