An overwhelming majority of US-based academics focused on the Middle East say they have felt the need to self-censor their criticism of Israel since the conflict between Israel and Hamas began on October 7, a new survey has found.

The Middle East Scholar Barometer survey found that among those who have chosen to self-censor, 81 per cent said they have withheld their criticism of Israel, compared with the 11pc who have withheld their criticism of Palestinians.

The main reasons for the self-censorship for around half the respondents were because they were concerned about campus culture and offending students, and were also worried about pressure from external advocacy groups.