A UK religious studies teacher who publicly praised Hamas and vilified Israel on social media has been permitted to continue working in education, despite being dismissed from his school.
Ronan Preston, who also uses the name Ronan Preastuin, lost his post at Ursuline High School in south-west London in 2024 after a series of inflammatory posts were uncovered by the GnasherJew website. The messages, published on X between January and April 2024, celebrated Hamas and portrayed Israel in overtly dehumanising terms.
Among the posts, Preston wrote “Glory to Hamas and freedom for humanity”. He described the group’s militants as “defenders of humanity”, calling for divine victory over what he labelled “grotesque, barbaric, idol-worshipping invaders”. He also characterised the 7 October attacks on Israel as a “justified act of resistance” and claimed Hamas had “committed no crime”. At the time, Preston was teaching pupils in Year 9.
Following an investigation, a misconduct panel acknowledged that the posts were “abhorrent and extremely offensive”, stating that they showed a lack of tolerance and respect for Israel, Jewish people and Judaism, and that they undermined British values. The panel also accepted that Preston’s actions had brought the teaching profession into disrepute.
Despite these findings, the Teaching Regulation Agency chose not to impose a ban. Instead, it concluded that formally publishing the panel’s findings was a sufficient sanction, arguing that a prohibition order would not be proportionate.
After losing his job, Preston returned to his native Ireland. Appearing before the panel, he said he was remorseful for what he described as “highly offensive” posts and offered an unreserved apology to the Jewish community. He attributed his behaviour to long working hours, social isolation and an emotional reaction to media coverage from Gaza.
Explaining the decision, panel chair Adnan Qureshi said the panel believed that making the findings public would adequately reflect the seriousness of the misconduct, which it deemed “entirely out of character”.
