News
Police question 6 people over memorial staged in NUS for Gaza war victims
No police permit was obtained for the event.
March 08, 2025, 10:45 AM
Six individuals have been questioned by the police after a memorial event was held without a valid permit outside a building at the National University of Singapore (NUS) on Jan. 13 over the Israel-Hamas war.
In response to media queries, the Singapore Police Force (SPF) confirmed that a police report was lodged against the public assembly and that police investigations are ongoing.
Interviewed some of those involved
On Feb. 27, the police visited the residences of the six people, aged 21 to 28, to investigate their alleged involvement, the police said.
Three of the six were present in their residences when the police visited and preferred to have their statements recorded at their residences.
Another individual was at his residence but requested to be interviewed the next day.
He was subsequently interviewed at Clementi Police Division on Feb. 28.
The remaining two were not available for interviews then, and a written note was issued to inform them to attend an in-person interview at Clementi Police Division on Feb. 28 to assist in investigations.
It is understood that both individuals attended the interview on Feb. 28.
Communication devices believed to contain evidence related to the public assembly and clothing believed to be used in the incident were seized for investigation.
"The police take no issue with such calls. People are free to make such (or other) calls, as long as it is not against the law. But if persons want to have a public assembly, then they have to get a police permit," the police said.
However, no police permit was obtained for the event and the police investigation into potential offences are ongoing under Section 16 of the Public Order Act 2009.
The police statement came in the wake of posts on Feb. 27 by four Instagram accounts - sgacadboycott, sgpforpalestine48, camira.asrori and loveaidsg - which jointly alleged that "police officers showed up en masse and unannounced at the homes of students and alumni to search their rooms and seize devices".
"This reeks of an attempt to intimidate students into silence, and we condemn the police’s disproportionate response to students’ act of grief," the posts added.
No police permit
Students had shared on social media that they held a staged memorial in support for the Palestinian cause and called for universities in Singapore to reconsider their ties with Israeli institutions.
According to the social media post, 124 students and alumni in Singapore staged a memorial to "mourn and honour the countless Palestinian student martyrs who have been unjustly murdered by Israel".
They placed 124 pairs of shoes and a white burial shroud in front of a NUS building that allegedly houses a research alliance between Singapore and Israel.
Subsequently, according to sgacadboycott on Instagram, at least 32 people showed up "in solidarity" when the three individuals went to be interviewed at Clementi Police Division.
Top photos via Students For Palestine Singapore
