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Pakistani Textbooks Promote Antisemitism, Distort History, Justify Violence, New Study Finds
Sinain Bibi reads at a makeshift school in a village in Swat district in Pakistan’s northwest Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Oct. 24, 2022. Photo: Thomson Reuters Foundation/Imran Mukhtar
Pakistani textbooks depict Jews and Israel through deep-rooted antisemitic stereotypes, promoting intolerance, distorting historical facts, and reinforcing prejudice among young readers, according to a new study released on Monday.
The Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education (IMPACT-se), a nonprofit organization that analyzes schoolbooks and curricula around the world, examined over 80 government-approved Pakistani textbooks in subjects ranging from Islamic education and history to social sciences, English, and Urdu as part of a national curriculum assessment.
The group’s newly released study reveals persistent antisemitism in Pakistani textbooks, with hostile portrayals of Jews in Islamic education and a complete absence of Judaism in comparative religion sections.
In several textbooks, Jews are repeatedly portrayed using long-standing antisemitic stereotypes, consistently depicted as “inherently treacherous and disloyal,” the study found.
For example, a 6th-grade textbook portrays Jewish tribes in Medina as conspiring against the Prophet Mohammed, the founder of Islam, on multiple occasions.
Meanwhile, a 5th-grade textbook repeats the antisemitic stereotype that Jews “caused Prophet Isa [Jesus] and his mother to suffer,” claiming they plotted against him to protect their authority.
According to the study, this portrayal reflects medieval antisemitic tropes that blame Jews for the crucifixion of Jesus.
“These narratives frame Judaism as inherently treacherous and promote intolerance,” the report explained.
IMPACT-se also pointed out that the Holocaust is completely omitted from school curricula in Pakistan, with some textbooks even praising Adolf Hitler for restoring German pride while ignoring the atrocities committed by the Nazis.
“Given Pakistan’s prominent regional role, its nuclear status, and large percentage of young people, this curriculum has far-reaching consequences,” IMPACT-se CEO Marcus Sheff said in a statement.
“What is taught in classrooms today will define Pakistan’s future global outlook, including its relationship with Israel and the Jewish people,” he continued.
In more recent history, the study found that Pakistani textbooks portray Israel as an aggressor solely responsible for the war in Gaza, while encouraging support for Muslim nations that seek to destroy the Jewish state.
For example, a 12th-grade textbook blames Israel for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, while making no mention of Hamas’s role in sparking the current war with its invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
The textbook “frames Israel as the sole aggressor and the source of the humanitarian catastrophe with no mention of the broader conflict,” the study explained.
“Israel is portrayed as an adversary and is shockingly handed exclusive blame for the current war in Gaza,” it continued.
IMPACT-se also pointed out that several Islamic education textbooks portray jihad as a physical or armed struggle, reinforcing the idea that violent resistance is justified in the face of perceived injustice.
For instance, a 9th-grade Islamic education textbook depicts jihad as a moral duty to protect the oppressed, portraying armed action as a religious obligation with a “broader and noble purpose.”
According to IMPACT-se, this portrayal is used to justify unlimited violence under the guise of moral duty.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.