A PALESTINIAN woman who has pleaded with Keir Starmer to help her take up a place at Edinburgh University has been backed by John Swinney.
The Sunday Mail reports that Shaymaa, 32, who is using her first name due to safety concerns, is one of 10 Palestinians in Gaza who have been accepted onto fully-funded courses in Scotland.
There are understood to be 78 Palestinians who have been accepted onto University courses in the UK.
But, due to the only biometric processing centre in Gaza being closed – and all routes out of the country blocked by Israel - there is no way for the students to be allowed to complete the visa checks.
The UK requires visa applicants to provide fingerprints and photographs.
The First Minister said he is “appalled” that students are being prevented from reaching safety in Scotland.
Edinburgh University and LibDem MP Christine Jardine have been lobbying the UK Government over the issue but fear time is running out as courses start in just a few weeks.
Shaymaa is due to begin her PhD in English literature at Edinburgh University on September 1.
She told the Sunday Mail: “Education is the path to the future. It is one of the few remaining pathways to survival and dignity for Palestinians right now.
“The UK has an opportunity to offer practical, life-saving solutions to students like me.
“I urge him to implement an emergency route for students and researchers from Gaza, including biometric deferral and safe passage, so we are not excluded from opportunities we have rightfully earned.”
Swinney said: “I am appalled at the situation Shaymaa and other students from Gaza are facing. We must see urgent action from the UK Government to support them in taking up their university places in Scotland.
“The people of Gaza are already suffering unimaginably at the hands of the Israeli government – the idea that these students could also be denied the chance to take up the university places in Scotland they have worked so hard to attain is not acceptable to me.”
The First Minister said Education Secretary Jenny Gilruth had contacted UK officials over the issue on August 13, and added that France, Ireland and Italy had managed to successfully evacuate students from Gaza. Gilruth has not yet received a reply, it is understood.
“The UK Government cannot simply duck its responsibilities here,” he added.
“Where there is a political will, a resolution can be found – and failure to act is literally putting these people’s lives at risk.
“I am clear that the international community must put a stop to Israel’s killing in Gaza and that we must see the immediate recognition of a sovereign, independent Palestine. But until that point, the UK Government must do everything it can to ensure ordinary Gazans are not punished further.”
Swinney said that the UK should do “everything in its power” to get the students to safety.
Earlier this month, 80 MPs signed an open letter to the Prime Minister urging him to take action to help the 78 students.
SNP MP Pete Wishart, LibDem Wendy Chamberlain and Brian Leishman were among those who signed the letter.
Shaymaa, originally from Absan al-Kabira, in the south of Gaza, was forced to flee her home when Israeli strikes started and has been displaced multiple times in the past 18 months. She is now living in a tent on a beach in al-Mawasi, Khan Younis, with 11 others.
“Coming to Scotland wouldn’t just allow me to continue my academic journey– which has been severely disrupted – but would also give me the chance to live and study in physical safety,” she said.
"It’s not just about personal safety either. It would be a chance to reclaim a sense of direction, to write and think and teach without fearing for my life every second. It would allow me to begin healing and to carry the stories of Gaza into spaces where they urgently need to be heard.”
A UK Government spokesperson said: “We are aware of these students and are actively considering how we can best support.”
