‘Not guilty’ verdict for Glasgow uni Palestine protesters should ignite momentum for action

The University of Glasgow (UoG) has been thoroughly complicit in Israel’s genocide in Palestine. But amid its stubborn refusal to change, student resistance has been unbreakable. And recent ‘not guilty’ verdict for protesters who took action earlier in the year may now embolden others to dial up pressure for a full trade embargo on Israel and divestment from companies complicit in its war crimes.

Hannah Taylor, whom UoG treated particularly harshly in an apparent attempt to deter other students from taking action, spoke to the Canary about the verdict.

At Glasgow Sheriff Court. 🇵🇸⚖️

The Glasgow Uni 2 both found NOT GUILTY of malicious mischief. 🇵🇸 pic.twitter.com/tz9x4st6oG

— GGEC (@ggectee) November 7, 2025

Student resistance gains momentum

Following weeks of uncertainty after her protest in February, the university said it would only allow Taylor to continue studying if she paid £2,800 to help clean up the red paint she had sprayed on a UoG building. And after many more months, a judge has finally ended her ordeal.

She was “very relieved the judge decided to find us not guilty”, but added that:

As usual the court process was incredibly unpleasant and stressful. I had to take several days off university and work often to stand and wait from 10-4 before being told the court was too busy to see my case. Everything about the process is designed to inconvenience you from hostile architecture of the actual building to the treacle-slow and archaic bureaucracy. The prosecution are allowed to be disorganised and delay the case but your attendance and compliance is ensured under threat of arrest. The courts are open to the public and I would recommend people go and sit for a day to see behind the curtain of how our system treats the people it’s meant to protect.

Despite the establishment intimidation she faced, however, she insisted:

I hope that this result will give others the courage to take whatever action they can. As British citizens we all have to reckon with our complicity in this genocide due to our government’s and institutions’ insistence on aiding the Israeli state’s crimes both financially and materially. I hope people will feel emboldened to take whatever action is needed to ensure a full UK trade embargo with Israel is implemented as well as full divestment from Israeli linked companies by our institutions.

Palestinians can’t go about  their business in peace. Why should complicit institutions?

A UoG spokesperson told the Canary:

The University of Glasgow upholds the right to freedom of expression, including the right of staff and students to engage in peaceful demonstrations. However, we do not tolerate acts of vandalism to University property or activities which interfere with the rights of others to go about their business in peace.

The fact remains, however, that the Palestinian people in Gaza have not been able to “go about their business in peace” during two years of genocide, nearly two decades of an illegal blockade, or nearly 60 years of settler-colonial occupation. So some may argue that non-violent “vandalism” against complicit institutions pales in comparison.

Indeed, resistance to UoG complicity in Israel’s war crimes has absolutely continued, with a recent protest seemingly forcing the postponement of an under-the-radar arms career fair. This new ‘not guilty’ verdict, meanwhile, is very much a victory against immoral institutions. It may just embolden ordinary people of conscience further.

Featured image via the Canary