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As a New Semester Begins, December Was Filled with Anti-Israel College Events

A student protester parades a Palestinian flag outside the entrance to Hamilton Hall on the campus of Columbia University, in New York, US, April 30, 2024. Photo: Mary Altaffer/Pool via REUTERS

Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) activities in December was characterized by a continuing high number of protests and attacks against Jews and Israelis in the US and globally. Notable incidents included: 

Protests and attacks against property included:

The escalating number of antisemitic attacks and violence is also reflected in various statistics: 

The huge escalation of violence in Canada and Australia in particular, attributed in part to large scale Muslim immigration and official hostility towards Israel following October 7, have caused serious alarm including among local politicians

On campuses the number of protests and arrests dropped dramatically compared to the 2023-2024 academic year. This may be attributed to a loss of momentum by the pro-Palestinian movement and to university restrictions put in place as a result of last year’s violence.

The appearance of greater calm, however, might be misleading. The arrest of two George Mason University students and SJP leaders, Palestinian-American sisters Jena and Noor Chanaa, suspected of vandalizing university property, revealed a cache of guns and ammunition as well as Hezbollah and Hamas materials. A third George Mason University student, Egyptian national Abdullah Ezzeldin Taha Mohamed Hassan, was arrested on charges of planning a terror attack on the Israeli consulate in New York City. 

Virginian Republican Governor Glenn Youngkin stated further that SJP “pose[s] a clear and present threat to Jewish students and the Jewish community in Virginia.” Virginia Attorney General Jason Miyares launched an investigation of SJP’s supporting organization, American Muslims for Palestine, shortly after October 7th. The prospect of terrorist attacks by students gives further urgency to calls to detain and deport hostile foreign nationals. 

 Administrations

 The sustaining relationship between diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs and ideology and campus antisemitism continues to be highlighted. One recent study documented how DEI training increases psychological harm, hostility, and the propensity to agree with extremist language and punitive behaviors.

The situation was demonstrated in a case at the University of Michigan, where a leading DEI administrator was fired for stating at a conference that Jews have “no genetic DNA that would connect them to the land of Israel,” the university was “controlled by wealthy Jews,” and reportedly stating that “Jewish students are all rich. They don’t need us.” She denied making the remarks and plans to sue the university. The firing comes as the university ended the use of diversity statements in faculty hiring, promotion, and tenure decisions and considered ending all its DEI programs. 

Both the University of Cincinnati and the University of California resolved cases regarding anti-Jewish and anti-Muslim discrimination with the US Department of Education. The resolutions involved changes to staff training and reporting procedures rather than fundamental changes to campus culture.

Pro-Hamas protestors continue to be disciplined by universities. The University of Georgia and George Mason University suspended their SJP chapters, while the University of Minnesota suspended a number of SJP members and demanded financial restitution for damages they caused during a building takeover. New York University Law School also warned protestors that they may be subject to unspecified disciplinary action.

Students

Fallout from the past year’s anti-Israel protests continues to be felt. Despite a lower number of protests, Hillel International reported approximately the same number of campus incidents in 2024 as in 2023. These included several violent assaults. The prospect of future violence also remains strong. 

At the University of Michigan, saga of the activists elected on the platform of shutting down student government in order to support ‘Gaza’ has come to a close. After shutting down funding to all student clubs only to have the administration provide independent funding, the president and vice president of the student government have now been impeached and removed from office. Pro-Palestinian students admit that the officers “look like extremists” and have damaged the cause on campus 

The extent to which anti-Israel hate has damaged various aspects of campus life is becoming clear:

Faculty

Faculty continue to be at the forefront of campus antisemitism and support for Hamas. A new study has shown again that institutions with the most active anti-Israel faculty are those with the most incidents directed against Jewish students.

Faculty anti-Israel activity is also now fully bound up with unionized labor. At Rutgers University, a majority of faculty union members associated with two unions, the American Association of University Professors and American Federation of Teachers, voted in favor of a BDS resolution and called for the university to ends its relationship with Tel Aviv University.

By following unionized graduate students in making anti-Israel politics a labor issue, faculty unions attempt to leverage public support for organized labor and minimize the overt bias involved in anti-Israel resolutions. 

These efforts mesh with continued efforts to characterize anti-Israel course content and classroom behavior as part of ‘academic freedom.’ Criticism of such content, such as planned course at Cornell University called “Gaza, Indigeneity, Resistance” to be taught by a notable anti-Israel faculty member, including comments by the university president, were characterized as a threat to academic freedom. In another recent example of this subterfuge, it emerged that Columbia University’s most notorious anti-Israel faculty member, Joseph Massad, will be teaching a course on Zionism. 

A lawsuit brought against Carnegie Mellon University by an Israeli student provides an inside look at how individual faculty abuse students in the classroom. The suit, which a Federal court has allowed to proceed, alleges that a faculty member described the student’s architectural project “model looked like the wall Israelis use to barricade Palestinians out of Israel,” and that the student’s time “would have been better spent if [she] had instead explored ‘what Jews do to make themselves such a hated group.’” 

K-12

After October 7, 2023, the K-12 sphere was revealed as a key environment for anti-Israel bias. Replacing the emphasis on transgender issues with anti-Israel bias appears to be part of the sector’s adaptive strategy to maintain its relevance. Teachers’ unions are central to the process. For example, the Massachusetts Teachers Association declared that Israel was committing ‘genocide’ in December 2023 and has proceeded to undertake training sessions and to provide materials demonizing Israel.

The trend of teachers testifying to one another that Israel is a satanic entity has expanded. At a recent educator’s conference, Massachusetts teachers emphasized Israeli ‘genocide’ and ‘apartheid’ with one participant calling for ‘two perspectives’ regarding the Holocaust. Similarly, at the recent National Association of Independent Schools conference, which represents more than 2,000 private schools, several speakers described Israel as racist and genocidal. Jewish participants reported hostility from other attendees, with many vowing not to return. The association’s president apologized, a move which was condemned by anti-Israel speakers.

The pervasive bias shown by teachers has been institutionalized in classrooms and administrations. Responding to a complaint from Jewish parents, the US Department of Education found that the Philadelphia School District did not adequately address cases of “harassment based on shared ancestry.” The resolution calls for staff training and revised policies. The Department also found that the school district refused to produced requested information.

The author is a contributor to SPME, where a significantly different version of this article first appeared.

The post As a New Semester Begins, December Was Filled with Anti-Israel College Events first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Colorado Attack Suspect Charged with Assault, Use of Explosives

FILE PHOTO: Boulder attack suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman poses for a jail booking photograph after his arrest in Boulder, Colorado, U.S. June 2, 2025. Photo: Boulder Police Department/Handout via REUTERS

A suspect in an attack on a pro-Israeli rally in Colorado that injured eight people was being held on Monday on an array of charges, including assault and the use of explosives, in lieu of a $10-million bail, according to Boulder County records.

The posted list of felony charges against suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, in the attack on Sunday also includes charges of murder in the first degree, although police in the city of Boulder have said on social media that no victims died in the attack. Authorities could not be reached immediately to clarify.

Witnesses reported the suspect used a makeshift flamethrower and threw an incendiary device into the crowd. He was heard to yell “Free Palestine” during the attack, according to the FBI, in what the agency called a “targeted terror attack.”

Four women and four men between 52 and 88 years of age were transported to hospitals after the attack, Boulder Police said.

The attack took place on the Pearl Street Mall, a popular pedestrian shopping district near the University of Colorado, during an event organized by Run for Their Lives, an organization devoted to drawing attention to the hostages seized in the aftermath of Hamas’ 2023 attack on Israel.

Rabbi Yisroel Wilhelm, the Chabad director at the University of Colorado, Boulder, told CBS Colorado that the 88-year-old victim was a Holocaust refugee who fled Europe.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Soliman had entered the country in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023. He filed for asylum in September 2022. “The suspect, Mohamed Soliman, is illegally in our country,” the spokesperson said.

The FBI raided and searched Soliman’s home in El Paso County, Colorado, the agency said on social media. “As this is an ongoing investigation, no additional information is available at this time.”

The attack in Boulder was the latest act of violence aimed at Jewish Americans linked to outrage over Israel’s escalating military offensive in Gaza. It followed the fatal shooting of two Israel Embassy aides that took place outside Washington’s Capital Jewish Museum last month.

Ron Halber, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, said after the shooting there was a question of how far security perimeters outside Jewish institutions should extend.

Boulder Police said they would hold a press conference later on Monday to discuss details of the Colorado attack.

The Denver office of the FBI, which is handling the case, did not immediately respond to emails or phone calls seeking clarification on the homicide charges or other details in the case.

Officials from the Boulder County Jail, Boulder Police and Boulder County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to inquiries.

The post Colorado Attack Suspect Charged with Assault, Use of Explosives first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Iran Poised to Dismiss US Nuclear Proposal, Iranian Diplomat Says

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attends a press conference following a meeting with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, April 18, 2025. Photo: Tatyana Makeyeva/Pool via REUTERS

Iran is poised to reject a US proposal to end a decades-old nuclear dispute, an Iranian diplomat said on Monday, dismissing it as a “non-starter” that fails to address Tehran’s interests or soften Washington’s stance on uranium enrichment.

“Iran is drafting a negative response to the US proposal, which could be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer,” the senior diplomat, who is close to Iran’s negotiating team, told Reuters.

The US proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran on Saturday by Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, who was on a short visit to Tehran and has been mediating talks between Tehran and Washington.

After five rounds of discussions between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, several obstacles remain.

Among them are Iran’s rejection of a US demand that it commit to scrapping uranium enrichment and its refusal to ship abroad its entire existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium – possible raw material for nuclear bombs.

Tehran says it wants to master nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and has long denied accusations by Western powers that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

“In this proposal, the US stance on enrichment on Iranian soil remains unchanged, and there is no clear explanation regarding the lifting of sanctions,” said the diplomat, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Araqchi said Tehran would formally respond to the proposal soon.

Tehran demands the immediate removal of all US-imposed curbs that impair its oil-based economy. But the US says nuclear-related sanctions should be removed in phases.

Dozens of institutions vital to Iran’s economy, including its central bank and national oil company, have been blacklisted since 2018 for, according to Washington, “supporting terrorism or weapons proliferation.”

Trump’s revival of “maximum pressure” against Tehran since his return to the White House in January has included tightening sanctions and threatening to bomb Iran if the negotiations yield no deal.

During his first term in 2018, Trump ditched Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with six powers and reimposed sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy. Iran responded by escalating enrichment far beyond the pact’s limits.

Under the deal, Iran had until 2018 curbed its sensitive nuclear work in return for relief from US, EU and U.N. economic sanctions.

The diplomat said the assessment of “Iran’s nuclear negotiations committee,” under the supervision of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was that the US proposal was “completely one-sided” and could not serve Tehran’s interests.

Therefore, the diplomat said, Tehran considers this proposal a “non-starter” and believes it unilaterally attempts to impose a “bad deal” on Iran through excessive demands.

NUCLEAR STANDOFF RAISES MIDDLE EAST TENSIONS

The stakes are high for both sides. Trump wants to curtail Tehran’s potential to produce a nuclear weapon that could trigger a regional nuclear arms race and perhaps threaten Israel. Iran’s clerical establishment, for its part, wants to be rid of the devastating sanctions.

Iran says it is ready to accept some limits on enrichment, but needs watertight guarantees that Washington would not renege on a future nuclear accord.

Two Iranian officials told Reuters last week that Iran could pause uranium enrichment if the US released frozen Iranian funds and recognized Tehran’s right to refine uranium for civilian use under a “political deal” that could lead to a broader nuclear accord.

Iran’s arch-foe Israel sees Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat and says it would never allow Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons.

Araqchi, in a joint news conference with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo, said: “I do not think Israel will commit such a mistake as to attack Iran.”

Tehran’s regional influence has meanwhile been diminished by military setbacks suffered by its forces and those of its allies in the Shi’ite-dominated “Axis of Resistance,” which include Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iraqi militias.

In April, Saudi Arabia’s defence minister delivered a blunt message to Iranian officials to take Trump’s offer of a new deal seriously as a way to avoid the risk of war with Israel.

The post Iran Poised to Dismiss US Nuclear Proposal, Iranian Diplomat Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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The Islamist Crescent: A New Syrian Danger

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/Pool

The dramatic fall of the Assad regime in Syria has undeniably reshaped the Middle East, yet the emerging power dynamics, particularly the alignment between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, warrant profound scrutiny from those committed to American and Israeli security. While superficially presented as a united front against Iranian influence, this new Sunni axis carries a dangerous undercurrent of Islamism and regional ambition that could ultimately undermine, rather than serve, the long-term interests of Washington and Jerusalem.

For too long, Syria under Bashar al-Assad served as a critical conduit for Iran’s destabilizing agenda, facilitating arms transfers to Hezbollah and projecting Tehran’s power across the Levant. The removal of this linchpin is, on the surface, a strategic victory. However, the nature of the new Syrian government, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa — a figure Israeli officials continue to view with deep suspicion due to his past as a former Al-Qaeda-linked commander — raises immediate red flags. This is not merely a change of guard; it is a shift that introduces a new set of complex challenges, particularly given Turkey’s historical support for the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization deemed a terror group by Saudi Arabia and many other regional states.

Israel’s strategic calculus in Syria has always been clear: to degrade Iran’s military presence, prevent Hezbollah from acquiring advanced weaponry, and maintain operational freedom in Syrian airspace. Crucially, Israel has historically thought it best to have a decentralized, weak, and fragmented Syria, with reports that it has actively worked against the resurgence of a robust central authority. This preference stems from a pragmatic understanding that a strong, unified Syria, especially one under the tutelage of an ambitious regional power like Turkey, could pose much more of a threat than the Assad regime ever did. Indeed, Israeli defense officials privately express concern at Turkey’s assertive moves, accusing Ankara of attempting to transform post-war Syria into a Turkish protectorate under Islamist tutelage. This concern is not unfounded; Turkey’s ambitious, arguably expansionist, objectives — and its perceived undue dominance in Arab lands — are viewed by Israel as warily as Iran’s previous influence.

The notion that an “Ottoman Crescent” is now replacing the “Shiite Crescent” should not be celebrated as a net positive. While it may diminish Iranian power, it introduces a new form of regional hegemony, one driven by an ideology that has historically been antithetical to Western values and stability. The European Union’s recent imposition of sanctions on Turkish-backed Syrian army commanders for human rights abuses, including arbitrary killings and torture, further underscores the problematic nature of some elements within this new Syrian landscape. The fact that al-Sharaa has allowed such individuals to operate with impunity and even promoted them to high-ranking positions should give Washington pause.

From an American perspective, while the Trump administration has pragmatically engaged with the new Syrian government, lifting sanctions and urging normalization with Israel, this engagement must be tempered with extreme caution. The core American interests in the Middle East — counterterrorism, containment of Iran, and regional stability — are not served by empowering Islamist-leaning factions or by enabling a regional power, like Turkey, whose actions have sometimes undermined the broader fight against ISIS. Washington must demand that Damascus demonstrate a genuine commitment to taking over the counter-ISIS mission and managing detention facilities, and unequivocally insist that Turkey cease actions that risk an ISIS resurgence.

The argument that Saudi Arabia and Turkey, despite their own complex internal dynamics, are simply pragmatic actors countering Iran overlooks the ideological underpinnings that concern many conservatives. Turkey’s ruling party, rooted in political Islam, and its historical ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, present a fundamental challenge to the vision of a stable, secular, and pro-Western Middle East. While Saudi Arabia has designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, its alignment with Turkey in Syria, and its own internal human rights record, means that this “new front” is far from a clean solution.

The Saudi-Turkey alignment in Syria is a double-edged sword. While it may indeed serve to counter Iran’s immediate regional ambitions, it simultaneously risks empowering actors whose long-term objectives and ideological leanings are deeply problematic for American, Israeli, and Western interests. Washington and Jerusalem must approach this new dynamic with extreme vigilance, prioritizing the containment of all forms of radicalism — whether Shiite or Sunni — and ensuring that any strategic gains against Iran do not inadvertently pave the way for a new, equally dangerous, Islamist crescent to rise in the heart of the Levant.

Amine Ayoub, a fellow at the Middle East Forum, is a policy analyst and writer based in Morocco. Follow him on X: @amineayoubx 

The post The Islamist Crescent: A New Syrian Danger first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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