A Royal Holloway student is facing possible hate crime charges after making a joke comparing a pro-Palestine activist’s headscarf to a tea towel in a case the student says should “scare everybody”. The Telegraph has the story.

Brodie Mitchell, a 20 year-old student at Royal Holloway, University of London, has been told that police have submitted a file to the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), seeking advice over possible charges for a hate crime.

The case has led to a free speech row and calls for the CPS to drop the inquiry.

Mitchell, who describes himself as a non-Jewish Zionist, became involved in the confrontation at Royal Holloway’s freshers’ fair last September, after Huda El-Jamal, the President of the Friends of Palestine Society, allegedly described him as a “wannabe Jew” and asked why he was not wearing a Jewish yarmulke or kippah.

He responded by telling El-Jamal: “You’re wearing a tea towel on your head,” referring to her keffiyeh scarf. The scarf is a symbol of the Palestinian cause.

Mitchell was suspended from the university the next day for the duration of a nine-week investigation by Royal Holloway “for alleged conduct that could be considered hate speech”.

He is now taking the university to court over its decision to temporarily suspend him from his studies.

Read More: Student Facing Charges Over Tea Towel Joke About Pro-Palestine Activist