“Blood-Soaked”: Manchester University students vote to sever ties with Tel Aviv University

• University of Manchester students voted by a 94% majority to cut all academic and research ties with Tel Aviv University
• The University of Manchester administration immediately dismissed the student mandate as non-binding

The University of Manchester (UoM) Students’ Union has delivered an overwhelming mandate to end the university’s institutional partnership with Tel Aviv University (TAU), following a referendum where 94 percent of participating students voted in favor of the motion.

The vote, which took place on Thursday, saw a high turnout for a Students’ Union ballot, with 4,831 students casting their votes on the motion, officially titled 'UoM Should End Partnership with TAU'.

Institutional Ties and Military Links

The student campaign centered on Tel Aviv University’s deep integration into ‘Israel’s’ military infrastructure and involvement in human rights violations.

Activists pointed to TAU’s extensive ties to the ‘Israeli’ military, including the operation of a joint research center with the ‘Israeli’ Air Force and collaborations with armaments manufacturers such as Elbit Systems, which has sponsored programs at the university.

The partnership, established in 2021, is a research seed fund competition intended to "catalyse new collaborations".

Financial records show that UoM has spent up to £89,248 on the program to date.

A spokesperson from UoM Action 4 Palestine, the leading campaign group, framed the vote as a clear rejection of the university’s ethical position.

“The student body stands firmly in support of Palestinian liberation,” the spokesperson stated.

“They reject the university's blood-soaked ties with Tel Aviv University and call on the university to take tangible steps to cease its complicity in genocide. We will be holding the university management accountable to the voice of the students. We say academic boycott now!”.

University Cites 'Academic Freedom'

Despite the near-unanimous student decision, the University of Manchester administration has affirmed that the Students’ Union motion is non-binding.

In an official response, a University of Manchester spokesperson emphasized the institution's commitment to intellectual independence and legal compliance: “While we respect the democratic right of students to vote in favour of this motion, our researchers also have the right to pursue their research interests as they see fit, within the law. The motion by the Students' Union is non-binding on the University, and we believe collaboration with international partners is important, alongside our long-standing and widespread activity to provide scholarships and assistance to students and academics from conflict areas around the world”.

The University noted that the partnership’s projects, spanning areas such as health, astrophysics, and the Arabic language, are voluntary for academics.

The action follows similar decisions across Europe and South America, where more than 30 universities in countries including the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Spain, Ireland, and Brazil have ended cooperation agreements with ‘Israeli’ institutions, leading to official warnings of a growing "brain drain" in 'Israel’s' academic sector.