An accusation that Israel has committed genocide and ethnic cleansing in Gaza has been dropped by students at the University of Manchester following a backlash.

The 2,000-word motion, which expresses solidarity with Palestinians amid the Israel-Hamas war, was withdrawn earlier this week.

It was lodged with the university’s student union (UMSU) by a student from the university’s Friends of Palestine group several months ago.

The motion accuses Israel “in its entirety” of being “an apartheid settler-colonial state committing ongoing genocide against Palestinians” and recognises that “as an occupied nation, the people of Palestine have the right to armed resistance under international law.”

It also urged full support for the BDS (boycott, divestment and sanctions) movement against Israel.

In addition, the motion argues that a two-state solution has become “impossible” due to the “continued expansion of Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine” and advocates for a “single, free, multi-faith Palestinian state”.