UK: Muslim academic expresses pride in supporting Hamas, calls for removal of ‘all Zionists’ from institutions

Image: Jihad Watch

A senior academic at one of the UK’s leading universities has come under scrutiny for publicly supporting a campaign to remove Hamas from Britain’s official list of terrorist organisations and for previously posting inflammatory comments about Zionists.

Dr. Tarek Younis, a lecturer in psychology at Middlesex University since 2019, stated via social media that he was “proud to have contributed” to a legal application by the London-based law firm Riverway Law. The firm is seeking to challenge the UK government's proscription of Hamas under the Terrorism Act 2000, arguing it infringes on rights protected under the European Convention on Human Rights.

In a post dated April 9 on X (formerly Twitter), Dr. Younis expressed his support for the initiative, which has sparked outrage due to Hamas’ designation by the UK and other Western countries as a terrorist organisation, citing its militant activities and attacks on civilians.

Further controversy surrounds Dr. Younis for a now-deleted post in which he declared that “our work isn’t done until all Zionists are removed from our institutions and shamed, alongside all racists, into nothingness.” Despite the deletion, screenshots of the post continue to circulate widely online and have reignited concerns over the boundaries between legitimate political criticism and hate speech.

Dr. Younis’s previous academic profile on the Aziz Foundation’s website (now removed) identified him as a former British Academy fellow with a research focus on the impact of the UK’s Prevent strategy on British Muslims, particularly within the NHS. His work also explores themes of Islamophobia, identity, and structural racism.

According to Jewish News, Dr. Younis was scheduled to speak at an Islamophobia panel hosted by the British Association of Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapies (BABCP). However, the session was cancelled after revelations that several panellists—including Dr. Younis—had made or endorsed extreme anti-Zionist statements. The BABCP reportedly decided to withdraw the event due to concerns about maintaining neutrality and inclusivity in professional settings.

Dr. Younis has not issued a public response to the criticism, and Middlesex University has yet to comment on whether any disciplinary review is underway.

The incident feeds into a broader national debate about free speech, academic freedom, and the line between criticism of Israeli state policy and rhetoric that veers into antisemitism. Critics argue that backing Hamas—an organisation responsible for deadly attacks including the October 7 massacre in Israel—goes beyond political expression and potentially emboldens extremism.

(This Article was originally published by Jihad Watch)