RSS
Jewish Students Don’t Feel Safe on US College Campuses After Oct. 7 Massacre, New Survey Finds
Demonstrators take their “Emergency Rally: Stand with Palestinians Under Siege in Gaza” out of Harvard University and onto the streets of Harvard Square, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US, Oct.14, 2023. Photo: REUTERS/Brian Snyder
Overwhelming majorities of Jewish students feel less safe at their colleges and universities amid an explosion of antisemitism across US campuses since Hamas’ massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, according to new survey results released by the Israel on Campus Coalition (ICC), a nonprofit that promotes education about the Jewish state.
As previously reported by The Algemeiner, the atrocities of Oct. 7 emboldened anti-Zionist activists, who have doubled down on efforts to bully — and at times, assault — Jewish students, shutter academic exchange programs linked to Israel, and force measures adopting the boycott, divestment, and sanctions (BDS) movement against the Jewish state through student government and university governing bodies.
The campus climate has had a demonstrable effect on the psychology of Jewish students, said ICC’s survey, which was conducted on the group’s behalf by Schoen Cooperman Research. It found that 73 percent of Jewish student respondents “feel less safe” since Oct. 7, and that 65 percent said the numerous BDS resolutions passed by university governments pose a threat to Jewish campus life everywhere. According to the results, 77 percent of Jewish students believe the BDS movement is antisemitic, and 81 percent say it is important they use their voices to stand with the Jewish community on campus.
“Imagine if 81 percent of students from any other group felt targeted and unwelcome on campus,” ICC chief executive officer Jacob Baime told The Algemeiner. “For Jewish students, that’s the disturbing reality due to BDS votes. BDS is not about free speech. It’s about free hate. It’s time for university leaders to step in and cancel these votes.”
The BDS movement seeks to isolate Israel from the international community as a step toward the Jewish state’s eventual elimination.
The students who responded to the ICC survey are not retreating from the campus debate, however. Sixty-two percent of Jewish college students said opposing BDS rhetorically “is important,” and a majority added that taking concrete action to do so “is critical.”
“Despite these challenges, Jewish students have shown remarkable resilience, proudly standing up for Israel and their Jewish identity, as we have been supporting students around the clock,” Baime added. “Their strength and their determination in the face of adversity will only make them stronger as they continue to encounter antisemitism on campus after they graduate.”
US college campuses have experienced an alarming spike in antisemitic incidents — including demonstrations calling for Israel’s destruction and the intimidation and harassment of Jewish students — since Hamas’ Oct. 7 massacre. Elite universities have been among the biggest hubs of such activity, with students and faculty both demonizing Israel and rationalizing the Hamas atrocities.
In December, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) noted that between the Oct. 7 onslaught in Israel and Dec. 7, the Jewish civil rights organization “recorded the highest number of antisemitic incidents ever recorded during any two-month period” in over 40 years of tracking such data.
On college campuses alone, the ADL recorded 470 antisemitic incidents between Oct. 7 and Dec. 18. During that same period, antisemitic incidents across the US skyrocketed by 323 percent compared to the prior year.
Experts have told The Algemeiner that the situation on college campuses would improve if the Biden administration issued long promised regulations that apply the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) definition of antisemitism to civil rights investigations — a measure, they argue, would help protect Jewish students from antisemitic discrimination and harassment rooted in anti-Zionism.
The regulations, based on a directive given in Dec. 2019 by then-US President Donald Trump in response to rising anti-Zionist hatred on college campuses, were scheduled to be issued already but have been delayed and will not be instituted until at least Dec. 2024, after the next US presidential election, according to a copy of the proposed rule on the website of the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs.
The IHRA definition of antisemitism — which has been adopted by dozens of governments and hundreds of civic institutions around the world — includes examples of anti-Israel bias, such as “claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor,” “denying the Jewish people their right to self determination,” and “applying double standards by requiring of it a behavior not expected or demanded of any other democratic nation.”
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
The post Jewish Students Don’t Feel Safe on US College Campuses After Oct. 7 Massacre, New Survey Finds first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Daughter of Slain Terrorist Arrested for Swearing Allegiance to Hamas
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar looks on as Palestinian Hamas supporters take part in an anti-Israel rally over tension in Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa mosque, in Gaza City, Oct. 1, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Mohammed Salem
JNS.org – A resident of the Shuafat neighborhood in northeastern Jerusalem was arrested after she swore loyalty to slain Hamas terrorist leader Yahya Sinwar, the Israel Police said after initial charges were filed on Sunday.
The suspect was identified as the daughter of Barakat Odeh, a terrorist who was killed by police forces while carrying out a ramming attack near the Dead Sea on Oct. 30, 2022, wounding five IDF soldiers.
According to the police, the terrorist’s daughter managed accounts on several social networks under the name “Martyr Barakat Odeh,” which celebrated and glorified Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups.
Among her alleged social media posts were pictures of Sinwar and Hamas “political” leader Ismail Haniyeh, along with the caption, ‘We swear allegiance to you, Abu Ibrahim [i.e., Sinwar],” according to the police.
The suspect was also said to have mourned Zakaria Zubeidi—the Jenin chief of Fatah’s armed terrorist wing, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, during the Second Intifada—and Ibrahim Nabulsi, who led a Nablus terrorist cell.
The suspect’s pre-trial detention was extended until Monday as prosecutors prepared to submit a formal indictment against her.
Earlier on Sunday, two Jerusalem residents were charged with providing information to Hezbollah during the Israel Defense Forces’ year-long war against the Iranian-backed terrorist organization in Lebanon.
According to the indictment, Abd al-Salam Qawasameh and Taar Asili, both in their 30s, were in touch with a woman named “Diana,” a Hezbollah operative. The two men communicated with her via WhatsApp, and despite learning of her affiliation with the terrorist group continued sharing information with her, according to the indictment.
Among other accusations, Qawasameh is being charged with sending “Diana” pictures of the coastal town of Caesarea, where Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s private residence is located. Asili sent news articles about Israel and the security situation, according to the charges.
The post Daughter of Slain Terrorist Arrested for Swearing Allegiance to Hamas first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Iran ‘Has No Proxies,’ Khamenei Says as His Allies Languish
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting with a group of students in Tehran, Iran, Nov. 2, 2022. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS
JNS.org – The official X account of Iran’s supreme leader, Ali Khamenei, rejected the term “proxy” for Iranian-backed militias on Sunday.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran doesn’t have proxy forces. If we decide to take action [against the enemy], we don’t need proxy forces,” read the text on Khamenei’s English-language account.
This statement follows setbacks for Iran’s terrorist proxies in the Middle East: Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip, the Houthis in Yemen, and the Assad regime in Syria. The text seems to distance Tehran from these events, amid economic struggles and speculation about the Iranian regime’s vulnerabilities.
“They say that the Islamic Republic has lost its proxies in the region,” a related post by Khamenei said. But “Yemen fights due to their faith. Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad fight because their beliefs compel them to do so.”
US forces attacked the Houthis in Yemen on Saturday, while Israel targeted power stations and Hodeidah port after recent rocket and drone launches on Israel. Hezbollah suffered significant losses and agreed to withdraw south of Lebanon’s Litani River. Hamas lost control of most of Gaza, and its leaders have been killed along with many of its fighters.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Friday that Israel had “split [Iran’s] Axis right down the middle.”
Khamenei’s X account on Sunday appeared to counter. “The Zionists try to show they’re the victors. You wretched people! Where have you won? Have you won in Gaza? Have you destroyed Hamas? Have you freed your own prisoners? Is this victory to kill over 40,000 people without being able to achieve even one of your goals?”
Another post added, “You Zionists haven’t won; you’ve been defeated,” vowing that “the courageous, devout, young people of Syria will definitely expel you from there.”
The Iranian rial hit a record low last week, trading at 777,000 to the dollar. Internal protests over economic issues and religious coercion, including women’s dress codes, continue to challenge the regime. Donald Trump’s upcoming presidency may exacerbate tensions, especially after his campaign linked Iran to attempts to assassinate him.
The post Iran ‘Has No Proxies,’ Khamenei Says as His Allies Languish first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
RSS
Reports: 90% of 3-Stage Ceasefire, Hostage Release Deal Completed
Israelis protest against the government and to show support for the hostages who were kidnapped during the deadly Oct. 7, 2023 attack, amid the ongoing conflict in Gaza between Israel and Hamas, in Tel Aviv, Israel, Nov. 30, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Ronen Zvulun
i24 News – A ceasefire and hostage release deal between Israel and Hamas is 90% complete, according to a report in the BBC on Sunday.
Egyptian media said that 34 Israeli hostages are set to be released in the first stage of a deal, although the terrorist organization is demanding additional compensation for male soldiers held.
A senior Israeli official said Jerusalem has received “signs of life” from the hostages, according to a report in the Times of Israel.
Outstanding issues includes lists of hostages slated to be released as well as which are living and dead, although Hamas has stated it does not know where every one of the captives taken in the terrorist onslaught of October 7, 2023, is being held.
Another issue is the question of Israeli presence in the Gaza Strip, with Hamas reportedly backing down on its demand that all IDF soldiers leave. Instead, the Israeli army will reportedly remain in the Netzarim and Philadelphi Corridors for the duration of the ceasefire, with a withdrawal planned for later stages, when a civilian authority takes over administration of the Palestinian enclave.
The post Reports: 90% of 3-Stage Ceasefire, Hostage Release Deal Completed first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment Login