Palestinian student, 19, who boasted of her ‘joy’ at Hamas terror attacks faces DEPORTATION for being ‘threat’
A PALESTINIAN student who boasted of her “joy” at the Hamas terror attacks faces being deported.
Dana Abuqamar, 19, appeared at a pro-Palestine protest one day after Hamas carried out the October 7 attack on Israel.
The Manchester University law student described how she was “full of joy” and “proud that Palestinian resistance has come to this point”.
Now she claims the Home Office has rescinded her student visa citing reasons of “public safety”.
The president of Manchester Friends of Palestine alleged her “words were taken out of context”.
In a video released this week, she said the UK Government has “violated her human rights“.
Ms Abuqamar confirmed she would be appealing the decision.
“My words were taken out of context and they were framed as me supporting harm to innocent civilians, which is completely false and completely untrue,” she told the Middle East Eye.
“The UK Home Office decided to revoke my student visa following public statements supporting the Palestinian right to exercise under international law to resist oppression and break through the siege that was illegally placed on Gaza for over 16 years.”
She continued: “It’s an outrageous claim that the Home Office is making by deeming me a national security threat.
“I am a 19-year-old who has done nothing but go to school and advocate for social justice and try and be an asset to my community.
“So saying I pose a threat to national security is a completely baseless claim.”
A Home Office spokesperson said: “It is a longstanding government policy that we do not comment on individual cases.”
Ms Abuqamar previously told the BBC that 15 of her relatives had been killed after an Israeli attack on Gaza.
She said a “missile was dropped on their three-storey residential building”.
Who is Hamas?
HAMAS is an Islamist militant group founded in 1987 during the first Palestinian Intifada or uprising against Israel.
On October 7, 2023, they launched surprise land, air, and sea attacks on Israel, killing over 1,200 Israelis and leaving thousands more injured.
Hamas got its name from “Harakat Al-Muqawama Al-Islamia”, which is Arabic for Islamic Resistance Movement.
Over the years, Hamas has carried out shooting, bombing, and rocket attacks in Israel.
In 1997, the US designated Hamas as a terrorist organization.
On October 7, 2023, Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel.
The IDF said that the group had fired over 2,000 rockets from Gaza, while some militants entered the state via land, sea, and air using paragliders.
Ms Abuqamar drew criticism following a Sky News interview after the Hamas attacks.
She said: “‘We are full of pride. We are really, really full of joy (at) what has happened….
“We are proud that Palestinian resistance has come to this point.”
She later told the BBC that her comments had been “misrepresented”.
Ms Abuqamar added: “The death of any innocent civilian should not be condoned ever and we don’t condone it at all.”