BRISMES Committee on Academic Freedom
The BRISMES Committee on Academic Freedom was set up to monitor and defend academic freedom in the research, study and teaching of Middle East Studies in the UK and anywhere in the world, including in academic institutions in the Middle East and North Africa.
To learn more about how the committee works, please see the Terms of Reference.
The current Chair of the BRISMES Committee on Academic Freedom is Lewis Turner (Senior Lecturer in International Politics, Newcastle University).
Latest Statement/Letter
The Council and Committee on Academic Freedom of BRISMES have written to West Yorkshire Police to express our serious concern regarding the recent arrest of a Palestine solidarity protester following a protest in Leeds on the 27th December 2025. We understand that one individual has been arrested on suspicion of ‘inciting racial hatred’ for chanting slogans that include the phrase “globalise the intifada”, and that they are currently released pending further investigations. On the information available to us, this arrest appears to reflect a troubling and unwarranted criminalisation of political speech and to risk inconsistent application of the protections guaranteed under domestic human rights law.
10 March 2026
Previous Statements
Please find here the list of statements published by the Committee on Academic Freedom.
Previous Letters
Please find here the list of public letters published by the Committee on Academic Freedom.
Database of Expertise
The Database of Expertise in Middle Eastern and Islamic Studies provides a publicly available list of MENA experts with their research and areas of expertise.
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