The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is cutting funding for its citizens to study in the UK over fears they could become radicalized abroad.
The move means the UAE has removed British universities from a list of higher education institutions eligible for state grants, amid growing tensions over London’s decision not to designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, The Financial Times reported.
“[The UAE] I don’t want their children to be radicalized on campus,” said a person directly involved in the decision.
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A “Welcome to the People’s University for Palestine” banner at King’s College at the University of Cambridge, May 11, 2024, in Cambridge, UK (Mark Kerrison/In photos via Getty Images)
Since then, Emirati students who have applied to their government for a grant to study in Britain have been turned away.
The move also means that the UAE will not recognize qualifications from academic institutions that are not on the accredited list, making degrees from British universities less valuable than others, the report said.
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The skyline in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, where funding for its citizens to study in the United Kingdom has been cut. (Vidhyaa Chandramohan/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
“All forms of extremism have absolutely no place in our society, and we will root them out wherever they occur,” Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office said in a statement. “We offer one of the best education systems in the world and maintain strict student welfare and campus safety measures.”
The UAE has taken a crackdown on Islamist movements at home and abroad.
During the 2023-2024 school year, 70 students at British universities were reported for possible referral to the government’s deradicalisation programme, the report said.
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UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed al-Nahyan has repeatedly questioned Britain’s decision to declare the Muslim Brotherhood a terrorist organization.
The Starmer government said last year that the matter was being “closely investigated”.
