Two students face expulsion over pro-Palestine occupation

Two University of Melbourne students have been recommended for expulsion and two for suspension for taking part in a pro-Palestine demonstration at the Australian university’s Parkville campus last October, write Stephanie Convery and Cait Kelly for The Guardian Australia.

If the decisions are upheld, the students will become the first pro-Palestine student activists for whom suspension and expulsion have been enforced in Australia since the waves of student demonstrations against Israel’s assault on Gaza began in 2023.

The students intend to appeal against the decision, with one telling the Guardian Australia she believed the outcome had been “prejudged” by the university, which has implemented anti-protest rules that critics have characterised as “repressive” and an “authoritarian” overreach. The students were referred to the institution’s disciplinary committee after reports that they were part of a group of about 20 who, for about 90 minutes on 9 October, occupied the office of an academic they believed was integral to the university’s partnerships with the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Full report on The Guardian Australia site