ASIATODAY.ID, ABU DHABI — The United Arab Emirates has sharply curtailed its scholarship program for students seeking to study in the United Kingdom, citing growing concerns over radicalization on British university campuses, according to reports by UK media.
The decision is driven by fears that Emirati students are being targeted by Islamist groups while studying in Britain, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood, The Times reported, citing sources with direct knowledge of the policy shift. The transnational Islamist movement is officially designated as a terrorist organization in the UAE.
Under the new policy, the Emirati government will no longer provide generous state-funded scholarships covering tuition, accommodation, and living expenses for students enrolled at UK universities.
However, the move does not amount to a blanket ban. Emirati students are still permitted to study in the UK if they choose to finance their education privately.
In June last year, the UAE Ministry of Higher Education released a list of foreign universities approved for government scholarships. Notably, no British institutions were included.
According to the Financial Times, this omission was deliberate and reflected a policy that had been under review for some time.
“They don’t want their children to be radicalized on campus,” a source familiar with the discussions told the newspaper.
The decision aligns with the UAE’s broader crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood following the 2011 Arab Spring, when Islamist-led uprisings destabilized large parts of the Middle East and North Africa.
The organization was subsequently banned in the UAE, which has since pushed for international recognition of the Brotherhood as a terrorist group.
The Muslim Brotherhood has already been outlawed in several countries, including Russia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Jordan.
In the United States, President Donald Trump last year designated several Brotherhood-linked groups and individuals as terrorists, stopping short of labeling the organization itself.
France has also been weighing similar measures, with a government report last May describing the group as having an “anti-republican and subversive” character.
The UAE’s move is expected to have repercussions for British universities, which have long benefited from a steady flow of well-funded students from the Gulf region. (RT)
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