Open University reverses UKLFI-influenced 'ancient Palestine' ban

Open University reverses UKLFI-influenced 'ancient Palestine' ban Submitted by Imran Mulla on Wed, 03/04/2026 - 13:52 UK Lawyers for Israel said the term 'ancient Palestine' could create a 'hostile or offensive learning environment for Jewish and Israeli students' The Robert Hooke Building at the Open University campus in Milton Keynes, spring 2013 (Wikimedia Commons) Off The Open University (OU) has appeared to reverse a commitment it made to pro-Israel lobby group UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI) to stop using the term "ancient Palestine", Novara Media reported. According to the report, on 30 November 2025, UKLFI wrote to the OU complaining that the term "ancient Palestine" could create a "hostile or offensive learning environment for Jewish and Israeli students". UKLFI claimed the OU could be breaching the Equality Act.