UK's St Andrews university fires rector from governing body for Israel criticism

A Scottish university has removed its rector from the institution's governing body after she issued a statement that condemned Israel's "genocidal attacks" on Gaza. 

The University of St Andrews said on Thursday that it had removed Stella Maris from her position on the university court after an investigation concluded that she exercised "poor judgment" for sending an email out to all students last November that called for an urgent ceasefire in Gaza. 

She will retain the title and office of rector, a position elected by students, until her term expires in October 2026.

"The decision to discharge Ms Maris is the conclusion of a lengthy process which began in November 2023 when Ms Maris, as rector, issued a message to all 10,000 St Andrews students offering her personal opinions on the conflict in Gaza and Israel," said St Andrews. 

Maris, who is an alumnus of the university, also accused Israel in her email of practising "apartheid... siege [and] illegal occupation" in Palestinian lands. 

Following her statement, St Andrews launched an independent inquiry led by Morag Ross KC, to "examine" whether Maris's actions and activities were compatible with her role as rector. 

Ross submitted the findings from her internal inquiry to the university court, the highest governing body at St Andrews, in April. She found that Maris's email had caused "anxiety and fear" among Jewish students. 

But despite Ross concluding that firing Maris would be "disproportionate", the university court concluded that she should be removed from her position. 

Commenting on the outcome, Maris said she was "disappointed" and that the decision showed a "lack of respect for the role of the rector in speaking independently for students as their elected representative". 

'The silencing of pro-Palestinian or anti-genocide voices is the reason why this genocide is still going on after 10 months'

- Ghassan Abu Sita, rector of the University of Glasgow

"It is clear that I have been removed from university court because I called for an end to Israel's war crimes against Palestinians, and I will not apologise for doing so," said Maris. 

"As a young, neurodiverse Black woman with limited financial resources, I have faced the full force of the university, including a KC investigation, all because I made a statement supported by the overwhelming majority of students, calling for an end to a genocide." 

Maris added that she intended to appeal against the decision. 

At the University of St Andrews in Scotland, the students elect the rector to represent and advocate for their interests. The position is unpaid and carried out voluntarily.

Ghassan Abu Sita, a British-Palestinian surgeon who has provided aid in Gaza and is rector of the University of Glasgow, condemned St Andrews for removing Maris and said this decision would further embolden Israel.

"The silencing of pro-Palestinian or anti-genocide voices is the reason why this genocide is still going on after 10 months. These institutions have been part of a system of genocide enablement that has emboldened the Israeli government in its attempts to erase the Palestinian people," said Sita. 

Giovanni Fassi, director of the European Legal Support Centre, a pro-Palestinian legal NGO supporting Maris, said: "The university's decision to dismiss Ms Maris from the university court and as a trustee is clearly disproportionate, as confirmed by its own KC-led investigation.

"Moreover, we are concerned that the university's entire approach to this matter has been discriminatory and inconsistent with its obligations under international law. We will continue to support Ms Maris in appealing this unreasonable decision, and in any further legal action as necessary."