‘Put the Zios in the ground’ student denies stirring up racial hatred
Samuel Williams, 20, from Oxford, is alleged to have used threatening, abusive or insulting words during a demonstration in central London on 11 October last year
An Oxford University student accused of chanting for Gaza to “put the Zios in the ground” at a pro-Palestinian march has denied stirring up racial hatred.
Samuel Williams, 20, from Oxford, is alleged to have used threatening, abusive or insulting words during a demonstration in central London on 11 October last year.
The charge follows the circulation of a video filmed in Whitehall during a Palestine Coalition protest, in which a man addresses the crowd before leading a chant that includes the words: “Gaza, Gaza make us proud, put the Zios in the ground.”
Williams appeared in court this week and was granted conditional bail ahead of a hearing at Southwark Crown Court on 24 February.
As part of his bail conditions, Deputy Chief Magistrate Tan Ikram ruled that Williams must not take part in any Palestine-related protests within the M25 or in Oxford.
Oxford University confirmed that Williams has been suspended following his arrest.
The case is one of a growing number of prosecutions linked to language used at protests since the outbreak of the Israel–Hamas war, with police and prosecutors increasingly scrutinising chants and slogans for potential breaches of hate crime laws. Three people were charged on Monday for allegedly calling for an “intifada” at a protest on the day police announced a change in approach to the slogan.
Haya Adam, 21, of Edgware Road, central London, Azza Zaki, 60, of Edgware Road, central London, and Abdallah Alanzi, 24, of Fortunegate Road, Brent, will appear in court next month, the Metropolitan Police said.
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