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Columbia University Under Fire for Allowing Professor Who Praised Oct. 7 Hamas Attack to Teach Zionism Course

Pro-Hamas demonstrators at Columbia University in New York City, US, April 29, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Caitlin Ochs

Columbia University is facing an uproar after it was revealed that Professor Joseph Massad, who described the Hamas-led massacre of Israelis last Oct. 7 as “astounding,” “awesome,” and “incredible,” is slated to teach a spring semester course on Zionism, prompting calls for his dismissal from Israeli colleague Shai Davidai, who condemned Massad’s continued employment as evidence of the university’s “moral and intellectual bankruptcy.”

The news also prompted adjunct professor Lawrence Rosenblatt to announce his resignation, echoing Davidai’s criticism by declaring that Columbia has lost not only its “moral compass but its intellectual one.”

The undergraduate class, titled History of the Jewish Enlightenment in 19th Century Europe and the Development of Zionism, will also examine the peace process between Israel, Arab states, and the Palestinian national movement, alongside a “historical overview of the Zionist-Palestinian conflict,” according to a description of the course on Columbia’s website.

Massad drew outrage shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack when he published an article on the Palestinian propaganda outlet The Electronic Intifada. He described the invasion, which included the killing of 1,200 people and the taking of 253 hostages, as a “major achievement of the resistance in the temporary takeover of these settler-colonies” that dealt a “death blow” to Israeli confidence in its military.

Massad also expressed his wish that the evacuation of some 300,000 Israelis from their homes in Israel’s north and south as a result of the onslaught would turn into a “permanent exodus.”

“They may have finally realized that living on land stolen from another people will never make them safe,” he wrote.

Davidai, an assistant professor of psychology at Columbia, expressed outrage that someone who openly expressed “jubilation and awe” over the Hamas-led atrocities would be allowed to teach a class on Zionism.

“The fact that someone like Joseph Massad, who openly celebrates the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, who has talked about Jewish supremacy, and who has shown up to protest [in] anti-Jewish and anti-Israel and anti-American protests on campus, would teach a class about Zionism tells you everything that you need to know about not just the moral bankruptcy of Columbia University, but also the intellectual bankruptcy,” Davidai told The Algemeiner.

“I would never want to take a class about racism from someone who is racist, with someone who is sexist about sexism, with someone who is homophobic or transphobic about the LGBTQ movement, and I would definitely not want to take a class about Zionism from an avowed anti-Zionist,” Davidai went on. “I am not looking to be indoctrinated. I always want to be educated.”

The uproar reached beyond the university’s gates. US Rep. Ritchie Torres (D-NY) took to the social media platform X, where he echoed Davidai’s thoughts, likening Massad’s teaching assignment to “David Duke teaching a course on anti-racism.” Torres also questioned why US taxpayers subsidize “ideological indoctrination that glorifies mass murder.”

Massad’s controversial academic work has also resurfaced as part of the debate. In a 2003 paper, he described Zionism as a “colonial movement” built on a “religion-racial epistemology” with a “commitment to building a demographically exclusive Jewish state modeled after Christian Europe.”

He has also claimed that Zionism exploits “Jewish persecution, including the [H]olocaust, to justify its crimes.”

Davidai argued that Massad’s views disqualify him from teaching at all.

“The fact that he openly celebrated the Oct. 7 massacre, saying that the sites of kidnapping, murdering, torturing, mutilation, of babies, of Holocaust survivors, of entire families brought to him jubilation and awe, should immediately disqualify him from teaching in any institution in the Western world,” he said.

“We shouldn’t be talking about what he teaches. We should be talking about why someone so vile, an antisemite like that, an anti-American like that, is still on Columbia’s payroll,” Davidai added.

In his resignation letter, international and public affairs adjunct professor Rosenblatt criticized the administration for allowing Massad, who has “advocated for the destruction of the State of Israel and celebrated the Oct. 7 attacks,” to teach a course on Zionism.

“Having Massad teach a course on Zionism is akin to having a White nationalist teach about the US Civil Rights movement, a climate denier teach about the impact of global warming, or a misogynist teach about feminism,” Rosenblatt wrote.

While he acknowledged Massad’s right to express his beliefs, Rosenblatt emphasized that Columbia has a responsibility to ensure its courses are taught objectively and fairly. He suggested that, at best, such a course could be co-taught by diverse Israeli and Palestinian perspectives, but “not by someone who advocates for the eradication of a group of people.”

Rosenblatt concluded his resignation by saying that the university, by officially approving Massad’s course, had harmed its own academic integrity. “The institution of Columbia, in officially sanctioning this class and this professor, has harmed the academy it once was. As it is gone, I cannot remain,” Rosenblatt wrote, adding that he would consider returning if the university corrected what he called “this travesty.”

In response to the mounting criticism, a Columbia spokesperson issued a statement acknowledging the pain caused by Massad’s comments following the Oct. 7 Hamas-led attack. “Professor Massad’s statements following the terrorist attack on Oct. 7 created pain for many in our community and contributed to the deep controversy on our campus. We have consistently condemned any celebration or promotion of violence or terror,” the statement read.

It went on, however, to reaffirm the university’s commitment to the “principles of free expression and the open exchange of viewpoints and perspectives through opportunities for constructive dialogue.”

The statement noted that the course is an elective, and not a required course, and is one of three on Zionism and the history of Israel.

The post Columbia University Under Fire for Allowing Professor Who Praised Oct. 7 Hamas Attack to Teach Zionism Course first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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The BBC Documentary That Paints Every Israeli as an Extremist

The Jewish community of Beit El in Judea and Samaria. Photo: Yaakov via Wikimedia Commons.

Louis Theroux first visited the West Bank in 2011 to film a documentary titled Louis and the Ultra-Zionists, part of his long-running series for the BBC. Back then, he at least seemed to possess a trace of journalistic curiosity. Even the title signaled a degree of editorial caution — framing his subjects as a small, ideological fringe rather than representative of Israeli society as a whole.

At the time, Theroux made an effort to clarify that he was profiling a narrow segment of Israelis. He showed legally purchased Jewish homes (sold by Arab landowners, no less) and acknowledged the regular — and at times deadly — terror attacks faced by Israeli civilians living in the area, often requiring military protection. There was condescension, certainly. But there was also context.

Fast-forward to 2024, and the curiosity is gone — though the bemused, slightly smug expression remains. His new BBC documentary, Louis and the Settlers, drops even the soft qualifiers. No “ultra.” No nuance. Just “settlers.” And with that, Theroux makes it clear: half a million Israelis living in the West Bank are one and the same — extremists who, we’re told, want every last Palestinian removed from the land.

This time, the documentary doesn’t begin with questions. It begins with conclusions. And Theroux uses a brief, unrepresentative snapshot of life in the West Bank to draw sweeping indictments of the entire Israeli state.

The message is unmistakable: Israel is the problem. Settlers are the villains. And Palestinians are passive, blameless victims of a colonial project.

Within the opening minutes, Theroux plants his ideological flag. He refers to the West Bank as “Palestinian territory” and describes every Israeli community within it as illegal under international law — a sharp departure from his more qualified approach 14 years earlier.

And while his personal views seep in throughout the film, they become crystal clear during one exchange at a checkpoint, where an Israeli soldier casually refers to their location as “Israel.” Theroux shoots back: “We’re not in Israel, are we?”

And just like that, the BBC and Louis Theroux have redrawn Israel’s borders. No Knesset debate needed.

Erasing History to Blame the Massacre

The timing of this return trip is no accident. The film comes in the shadow of the October 7 Hamas massacres — the day 1,200 Israelis were slaughtered, families were burned alive in their homes, and children were dragged into Gaza. And yet, Theroux barely mentions it.

The few passing references to October 7 serve not to inform the audience — but to imply that Israel may be exploiting its own dead to justify further expansion. It’s not an investigation. It’s an accusation. And it allows him to skip over thousands of years of Jewish history in order to frame the current war in Gaza as a convenient cover story for Israeli “aggression.”

Take Hebron, for example. Theroux tells viewers that “in 1968, the year after [the West Bank] was occupied by Israel, a community of Jewish settlers moved in illegally. They now number some 700.” He fails to mention that in 1895 — decades before the modern state of Israel existed — Hebron had a Jewish population of 1,429.

Jews have lived in Hebron since antiquity — it’s where, according to Jewish tradition, Abraham purchased the Cave of the Patriarchs. Modern records date the community back centuries, despite discrimination under Ottoman rule and bans on Jewish prayer at holy sites. In 1929, Arab rioters carried out a massacre, wiping out Hebron’s Jewish population. Dozens were murdered; the rest were expelled. Under Jordanian rule from 1948 to 1967, Jews were banned from the city entirely. When they returned after the Six-Day War — not as colonists, but as a displaced community coming home — Theroux picks up the story there and calls it “illegal.”

On the Six-Day War itself, Theroux offers no context. No mention of the Arab armies preparing to destroy Israel. No mention of Israel’s preemptive strike against an existential threat.

According to The Settlers, Israel simply “occupied” — full stop.

Palestinian Terrorism? Not Even a Footnote.

Theroux visits Evyatar, a small Jewish community near the Palestinian town of Beita, and uses it as a stand-in for the entire West Bank. Beita is depicted as a symbol of peaceful resistance: a proud, ancient Palestinian village standing firm against violent settlers backed by IDF soldiers.

It’s a neat story. Too neat. Because missing from the story are years of organized, violent riots from Beita — complete with Molotov cocktails, burning Stars of David, and Nazi swastikas. All carefully omitted to preserve the narrative: Palestinians peaceful, settlers aggressive. Facts that don’t fit? Left on the cutting room floor.

Meanwhile, Israeli nationalism is treated as something sinister and unsettling — a moral aberration to be examined. The notion that Jews might want sovereignty or security is met with thinly veiled suspicion. Yet Hamas’ goal of a Jew-free Palestine, explicitly laid out in its charter, is never mentioned. Nor is the Palestinian Authority’s “pay-for-slay” policy, which literally incentivizes terrorism by rewarding those who murder Israelis — including women and children.

These aren’t fringe details. They’re central to understanding the region. And Theroux knows it. He just doesn’t care.

The BBC’s Complicity

That The Settlers aired on the BBC — a publicly funded broadcaster once seen as a gold standard of global journalism — says plenty. Not just about Louis Theroux’s agenda, but about the institutional direction of the BBC itself. This wasn’t a rogue filmmaker sneaking bias past the editors. This was bias built into the foundation — signed off, packaged, and broadcast under the banner of credibility.

There is, of course, no problem with scrutinizing Israeli policy, and no issue with questioning the settlement enterprise or highlighting the tensions in the West Bank. But journalism — real journalism — demands context. It demands precision. It demands at least a passing familiarity with the full scope of the story.

Theroux offers none of that. He arrives with a predetermined script and casts his roles accordingly: Hero. Villain. Victim. Oppressor. And when reality refuses to cooperate? It’s left out.

Louis Theroux didn’t return to Israel to understand it. He returned to flatten it. To reduce its complexity to a morality play — and to ensure everyone knows the antagonist is.

The Settlers isn’t a documentary. It’s a hit piece. And the BBC handed him the camera — then applauded the performance.

The author is a contributor to HonestReporting, a Jerusalem-based media watchdog with a focus on antisemitism and anti-Israel bias — where a version of this article first appeared.

The post The BBC Documentary That Paints Every Israeli as an Extremist first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Indian Army Kills Islamist Terrorist Linked to 2002 Murder of Jewish-American Journalist Daniel Pearl

Jewish-American Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped and murdered by Islamist terrorists in Pakistan in 2002. Photo: Screenshot

The Indian government announced on Thursday that its military forces had killed “Pakistan’s most wanted terrorist,” who was connected to the 2002 murder of Jewish-American Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl.

On Wednesday, India launched “Operation Sindoor,” which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) claims is targeted at dismantling “terrorist infrastructure” in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

The operation came after Pakistani terrorists killed 26 Hindu tourists in Kashmir last month amid escalating tensions between the two countries.

In a post on X, the BJP confirmed that during this week’s operation, the Indian army killed Islamist terrorist Abdul Rauf Azhar, who was involved in numerous terrorism plots, including the 1999 hijacking of an Indian Airlines flight, the 2001 terror attack on the Indian Parliament, and the 2016 Pathankot Air Force base attack.

Azhar’s involvement in the 1999 hijacking led to the release of Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, a British-born al-Qaeda member with close ties to Pakistan’s intelligence services, who later was involved in the kidnapping and subsequent murder of 38-year-old Pearl, who was covering the war on terror as a journalist when he was abducted.

In a statement on X, Pearl’s father, Judea, addressed initial reports regarding Azhar’s death and his connection to his son’s murder.

“I want to clarify: Azhar was a Pakistani extremist and leader of the terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed. While his group was not directly involved in the plot to abduct Danny, it was indirectly responsible. Azhar orchestrated the hijacking that led to the release of Omar Sheikh — the man who lured Danny into captivity,” he said.

In 2002, the Jewish-American journalist was abducted and killed by a group of Islamist terrorists connected to Azhar’s militant network, which had ties to al-Qaeda and Jaish-e-Mohammed, a terror group aiming to separate Kashmir from India and incorporate it into Pakistan.

On Jan. 27, 2002, an email was sent to several Pakistani and US media organizations, which included several photos, stating that Pearl was being held in “inhumane” conditions to protest the US treatment of Taliban and al Qaeda prisoners in Cuba. Photo: Screenshot

Originally stationed in New Delhi as the South Asia bureau chief for The Wall Street Journal, Pearl later moved to Pakistan to investigate terrorism following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in New York City.

After kidnapping Pearl at a restaurant in Karachi, southern Pakistan, the Islamist terrorists, who identified themselves as the National Movement for the Restoration of Pakistani Sovereignty, accused him of being an Israeli spy and sent the United States a list of demands for his release.

However, Washington did not meet their demands, and Pearl was ultimately executed after being held captive for five weeks.

His wife, Mariane Pearl, gave birth to a baby boy, Adam D. Pearl, in Paris later that year. On the Daniel Pearl Foundation website, she said, “Adam’s birth rekindles the joy, love, and humanity that Danny radiated wherever he went.”

The post Indian Army Kills Islamist Terrorist Linked to 2002 Murder of Jewish-American Journalist Daniel Pearl first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Jewish Jewelry Shop Owners Brutally Assaulted in Tunisia Days Before Annual Pilgrimage

A Jewish jewelry shop owner in Djerba, Tunisia, was brutally attacked by a man wielding a machete. Photo: Screenshot

A Jewish jewelry shop owner in Djerba, Tunisia, was brutally attacked by a man wielding a machete just days before the Tunisian island was set to host its annual Jewish pilgrimage, which is expected to draw thousands of visitors.

On Wednesday morning, two Jewish men — owners of a jewelry shop in the center of the island, located off Tunisia’s southeast coast — were physically assaulted by a man carrying a large knife.

Although the attack was halted when one of them screamed — alerting members of the local Jewish community who subdued the assailant — one of them was left severely injured.

According to local media reports, the attacker had surveyed the island the day before, visiting several stores to identify those owned by Jews. Local police arrested him shortly following the assault.

After the attack, one of the owners was admitted to the hospital with severe injuries. The 50-year-old Jewish man had his fingers severed during the assault and underwent surgery to reattach them.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar condemned the attack and expressed his wishes for a swift recovery to the victims.

“This attack comes two years after the previous deadly assault that claimed Jewish lives and the lives of security personnel during the Lag BaOmer celebration,” the top Israeli diplomat wrote in a post on X.

“I call on the Tunisian authorities to take all necessary measures to protect the Jewish community,” Saar continued.

Djerba is home to the majority of Tunisia’s Jewish community, numbering about 2,000 people, and is also where the renowned El Ghriba Synagogue, one of North Africa’s oldest synagogues, is located.

The attack comes just a week before Jewish pilgrims are expected to arrive on the island for the Lag B’Omer holiday, when thousands gather annually for three days of festivities. The annual pilgrimage to El Ghriba Synagogue, scheduled for May 15 and 16 this year, draws visitors from around the world.

The synagogue has been targeted in multiple terrorist attacks over the years, including in 1985, 2002, and 2023.

Two years ago, a shooting at the synagogue claimed the lives of two Jewish cousins and three police officers. Aviel Hadad, a 30-year-old Israeli goldsmith, and Ben Hadad, a 42-year-old Frenchman who had traveled to join the festivities, were among the victims.

The post Jewish Jewelry Shop Owners Brutally Assaulted in Tunisia Days Before Annual Pilgrimage first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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