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Cambridge University to consider divesting from arms industry amid Gaza protests

The University of Cambridge has announced it will divest from companies involved in producing "controversial weapons", and will vote next month on whether to divest from all arms companies following the publication of a landmark report.

Its announcement comes after years of student pro-Palestine protests and follows one of the university's largest colleges, King's College, deciding it would divest from the arms industry and companies complicit in "the occupation of Ukraine and Palestinian territories".

The report, which followed a year-long review into the university's links to the arms industry, was approved unanimously by the University Council on Monday.

It called for the university's £4.2bn ($5.62bn) endowment fund to divest from "any company which manufactures weapons illegal under UK law, even if those weapons are legal elsewhere", including chemical and biological weapons and cluster munitions.

Cambridge's university council has adopted this as policy. Significantly, it is also set to decide whether to divest from all arms manufacturers in a meeting on 20 November.

Read more: Cambridge University to consider divesting from arms industry amid Gaza protests

Students wave Palestinian flags during a protest at Cambridge University on 7 May 2024 (AFP)
Students wave Palestinian flags during a protest at Cambridge University on 7 May 2024 (AFP)