# University of Cambridge academic appointment controversy > Live situation record from CLSTR: https://clstr.news/situations/university-of-cambridge-academic-appointment-controversy > Updated: 2026-08-25T05:00:00.000Z. Sources: 4. Developments: 2. The University of Cambridge is facing scrutiny following the appointment of Farah Ahmed as an assistant research professor in its faculty of education and as a Governing Body Fellow at Hughes Hall. Ahmed is a former member of Hizb ut-Tahrir, an Islamist group that is currently proscribed as a terror organization. Reports regarding Ahmed’s past include a pamphlet titled ‘Education and Identity’ where she characterized democracy as a ‘corrupt tradition’ and described western education as a ‘threat’ to Muslim communities in Britain. Further reports highlight past writings in which she advocated for Muslims to study engineering and computing ‘to produce advanced weaponry for Jihad in order that the deen [Islam] may dominate over all other deens.’ While Ahmed stated in 2010 that she had left the organization because she did not agree with all of its political views, she has not provided recent clarification regarding her stance on these specific ideologies. The university has stated it is committed to academic freedom and freedom of speech within the law. ## Timeline ### 2026-08-25: Cambridge University appoints former Hizb ut-Tahrir activist as professor Cambridge University faces scrutiny for appointing Farah Ahmed, a former Hizb ut-Tahrir activist, as an Assistant Research Professor after her past writings advocated for Islamic-centric education and weaponry. 4 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/cambridge-university-appoints-former-hizb-ut-tahrir-activist-as-professor ### 2026-08-11: University of Cambridge hires academic with former ties to extremist group The University of Cambridge is under scrutiny after hiring Farah Ahmed, an academic and former member of the proscribed extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, as an assistant research professor. 3 sources. https://clstr.news/cluster/university-of-cambridge-hires-academic-with-former-ties-to-extremist-group --- Cite as: University of Cambridge academic appointment controversy. CLSTR, https://clstr.news/situations/university-of-cambridge-academic-appointment-controversy