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Department of Education opens new investigations of antisemitism and Islamophobia at schools in the wake of Oct. 7
(JTA) – The U.S. Department of Education announced that it has opened five new investigations into the handling of antisemitism and two into the handling of Islamophobia on college and K-12 campuses.
The announcement on Thursday was a show of force from the department, which said the flood of investigations represented “part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s continued efforts to take aggressive action to address the alarming nationwide rise in reports of antisemitism, anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and other forms of discrimination and harassment on college campuses and in K-12 schools since the October 7 Israel-Hamas conflict.”
Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began when the terror group invaded Israel on Oct. 7. Since then, Jewish groups and law enforcement agencies have reported a spike in antisemitism, and at a meeting in late October, the White House warned of “an alarming rise of reported antisemitic events” on college campuses since Oct. 7.
The investigations announced Thursday are being handled by the department’s civil rights office under Title VI of the Civil Rights Act, which forbids discrimination based on race or shared ancestry at federally funded institutions. An executive order signed by then-President Donald Trump in 2019 included some anti-Israel activity in the definition of antisemitism that falls under Title VI’s purview.
Jewish leaders at three recent House hearings on the subject called on the Education Department to use its resources to protect Jewish students, and Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona has tasked the department with moving swiftly to do so. Last week, he warned schools that they could lose their federal funding if they failed to properly investigate antisemitism on campus.
“Hate has no place in our schools, period. When students are targeted because they are—or are perceived to be—Jewish, Muslim, Arab, Sikh, or any other ethnicity or shared ancestry, schools must act to ensure safe and inclusive educational environments where everyone is free to learn,” Cardona said in a statement about the new investigations. “These investigations underscore how seriously the Biden-Harris Administration, including the U.S. Department of Education, takes our responsibility to protect students from hatred and discrimination.”
Opening an investigation does not mean the department believes the complaint’s claims are true, only that it has determined the complaint falls under its civil rights purview. Investigations look at whether the school in question took adequate measures to protect students from discrimination. Several of the schools on the list have issued responses in the wake of headline-grabbing instances of antisemitism.
The department declined to comment on the details of the investigations to the Jewish Telegraphic Agency and would not disclose which were related to antisemitism and which to Islamophobia.
But three of the colleges on the list, all in New York state, have made headlines because of antisemitic incidents since Oct. 7. At Cornell University, one student sent death threats to Jewish students on campus after a professor said at a rally that he was “exhilarated” by the Oct. 7 attack; at Columbia University an Israeli student was assaulted amid what Jewish students have said is an increasingly antisemitic environment; and at Cooper Union, Jewish students barricaded themselves in a library during a pro-Palestinian protest.
The presidents of all three schools have since issued statements condemning antisemitism, and Columbia’s president has announced the formation of an antisemitism task force. The school has also suspended its chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, citing violations of university rules, following a call by Jewish leaders to crack down on the group.
In addition, two of the new investigations appear to line up with recent civil rights complaints brought by the Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law, a pro-Israel legal group. Kenneth Marcus, founder and chair of the group, and a former Trump administration official, took credit for the “swift” opening of the two investigations in a statement to JTA, and a Brandeis Center spokesperson said the group had been informed that the investigations were in response to its complaints.
One of those complaints was about reported instances of antisemitic graffiti and a trespasser on the property of Hillel at the University of Pennsylvania in conjunction with a “Palestine Writes” festival held on campus prior to Oct. 7. The school has already pledged to review its event policies as a result of these incidents. The Brandeis Center’s Penn complaint also includes references to purported antisemitism taking place on campus since the attacks, citing chants referencing the “intifada” and “From the river to the sea” at campus rallies.
The second Brandeis Center complaint is about Wellesley College, where, the center alleges, dorm residential staff sent out an email after Oct. 7 saying that there should be “no support for Zionism within the Wellesley College community.” That complaint was brought jointly with Jewish on Campus, a student antisemitism watchdog group.
The other two schools with new investigations are Lafayette College in Pennsylvania and Maize Unified School District in Kansas, a suburb of Wichita. Maize Unified School District said in a statement Friday that the Department of Education did not provide it with a copy of the complaint, so the district couldn’t respond to it.
It was not immediately clear what may have prompted these final two investigations, but an Oct. 25 statement from the president of Lafayette College references a student holding up “a poster bearing words with antisemitic meaning” during a pro-Palestinian walkout, and notes that the incident would be addressed “through our bias accountability process.” An account from pro-Palestinian students in the campus paper said that the student in question had held a poster reading “From the river to the sea,” which the writers did not believe was antisemitic. In addition, administrators at the college this spring rejected a request to form a chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine, with the dean of students suggesting the group could target Jewish students.
Previous antisemitism-related investigations in the department have resulted in schools including the University of Vermont and the University of Illinois pledging to put new resources in place for Jewish students, including new campus facilities and antisemitism awareness training for staff.
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US State Department Revokes Visas of UK Punk Rap Act Bob Vylan Amid Outrage Over Duo’s Chants of ‘Death to the IDF’
Bob Vylan music duo performance at Glastonbury Festival (Source: FLIKR)
The US State Department has revoked the visas for the English punk rap duo Bob Vylan amid ongoing outrage over their weekend performance at the Glastonbury Festival, in which the pair chanted “Death to the IDF.”
The State Department’s decision to cancel their visas would preclude a planned fall concert tour of the US by the British rappers.
“The [US State Department] has revoked the US visas for the members of the Bob Vylan band in light of their hateful tirade at Glastonbury, including leading the crowd in death chants. Foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country,” Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau wrote on X/Twitter on Monday.
During a June 28 set at Glastonbury Festival, Bob Vylan’s Pascal Robinson-Foster ignited a firestorm by leading the crowd in chants of “Death, death, to the IDF,” referring to the Israel Defense Forces. He also complained about working for a “f—ing Zionist” during the set.
The video of the performance went viral, sparking outrage across the globe.
The BBC, which streamed the performance live, issued an on‑screen warning but continued its broadcast, prompting criticism by government officials for failing to cut the feed.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer and festival organizers condemned the IDF chant as hate speech and incitement to violence. The Israeli Embassy in London denounced the language as “inflammatory and hateful.”
“Millions of people tuned in to enjoy Glastonbury this weekend across the BBC’s output but one performance within our livestreams included comments that were deeply offensive,” the BBC said in a statement following the event.
“These abhorrent chants, which included calls for the death of members of the Israeli Defense Forces … have no place in any civil society,” Leo Terrell, Chair of the US Department of Justice Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, declared Sunday in a statement posted on X.
Citing the act’s US tour plans, Terrell said his task force would be “reaching out to the U.S. Department of State on Monday to determine what measures are available to address the situation and to prevent the promotion of violent antisemitic rhetoric in the United States.”
British authorities, meanwhile, have launched a formal investigation into Bob Vylan’s controversial appearance at Glastonbury. Avon and Somerset Police confirmed they are reviewing footage and working with the Crown Prosecution Service to determine whether the performance constitutes a hate crime or incitement to violence.
United Talent Agency (UTA), one of the premier entertainment talent agencies, dropped the duo, claming “antisemitic sentiments expressed by the group were utterly unacceptable.”
The band defended their performance on social media as necessary protest, stating that “teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place.”
The post US State Department Revokes Visas of UK Punk Rap Act Bob Vylan Amid Outrage Over Duo’s Chants of ‘Death to the IDF’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Dem House Leader Hakeem Jeffries Urges Mamdani to ‘Aggressively Address’ Antisemitism in NYC if Elected Mayor
Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY). Photo: Wikimedia Commons.
US House Democratic leader Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (NY) urged Democratic nominee for mayor of New York Zohran Mamdani to “aggressively address the rise in antisemitism” if he wins the general election in November.
“‘Globalizing the intifada’ by way of example is not an acceptable phrasing,” Jeffries said Sunday on ABC’s This Week. “He’s going to have to clarify his position on that as he moves forward.”
“With respect to the Jewish communities that I represent, I think our nominee is going to have to convince folks that he is prepared to aggressively address the rise in antisemitism in the city of New York, which has been an unacceptable development,” he added.
Jeffries’s comments come as Mamdani has been receiving an onslaught of criticism for defending the controversial phrase “globalize the intifada.”
Mamdani first defended the phrase during an appearance on the popular Bulwark Podcast. The progressive firebrand stated that he feels “less comfortable with the banning of certain words.” He invoked the US Holocaust Museum in his defense, saying that the museum used the word intifada “when translating the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising into Arabic, because it’s a word that means ‘struggle.’”
The Holocaust Museum repudiated Mamdani in a statement, calling his comments “offensive.”
Mamdani has continued to defend the slogan despite ongoing criticism, arguing that pro-Palestine advocates perceive it as a call for “universal human rights.”
Mamdani, the 33‑year‑old state assembly member and proud democratic socialist, defeated former New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and other candidates in a lopsided first‑round win in the city’s Democratic primary for mayor, notching approximately 43.5 percent of first‑choice votes compared to Cuomo’s 36.4 percent.
The election results have alarmed members of the local Jewish community, who expressed deep concern over his past criticism of Israel and defense of antisemitic rhetoric.
“Mamdani’s election is the greatest existential threat to a metropolitan Jewish population since the election of the notorious antisemite Karl Lueger in Vienna,” Rabbi Marc Schneier, one of the most prominent Jewish leaders in New York City, said in a statement. “Jewish leaders must come together as a united force to prevent a mass Jewish Exodus from New York City.”
Some key Democratic leaders in New York, such as US Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Gov. Kathy Hochul, have congratulated and complimented Mamdani, but have not yet issued an explicit endorsement. Each official has signaled interest in meeting with Mamdani prior to making a decision on a formal endorsement.
The post Dem House Leader Hakeem Jeffries Urges Mamdani to ‘Aggressively Address’ Antisemitism in NYC if Elected Mayor first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Israel Eyes Ties With Syria and Lebanon After Iran War
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar attends a press conference with German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul (not pictured) in Berlin, Germany, June 5, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Christian Mang
Israel is interested in establishing formal diplomatic relations with long-standing adversaries Syria and Lebanon, but the status of the Golan Heights is non-negotiable, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said on Monday.
Israeli leaders argue that with its rival Iran weakened by this month’s 12-day war, other countries in the region have an opportunity to forge ties with Israel.
The Middle East has been upended by nearly two years of war in Gaza, during which Israel also carried out airstrikes and ground operations in Lebanon targeting Iran-backed Hezbollah, and by the overthrow of former Syrian leader and Iran ally Bashar al-Assad.
In 2020, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Morocco became the first Arab states to establish ties with Israel since Jordan in 1994 and Egypt in 1979. The normalization agreements with Israel were deeply unpopular in the Arab world.
“We have an interest in adding countries such as Syria and Lebanon, our neighbors, to the circle of peace and normalization, while safeguarding Israel‘s essential and security interests,” Saar said at a press conference in Jerusalem.
“The Golan will remain part of the State of Israel,” he said.
Israel annexed the Golan Heights in 1981 after capturing the territory from Syria during the 1967 Six-Day War. While much of the international community regards the Golan as occupied Syrian land, US President Donald Trump recognized Israeli sovereignty over it during his first term in office.
Following Assad’s ousting, Israeli forces moved further into Syrian territory.
A senior Syrian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Syria would never give up the Golan Heights, describing it as an integral part of Syrian territory.
The official also said that normalization efforts with Israel must be part of the 2002 Arab Peace Initiative and not carried out through a separate track.
A spokesperson for Syria‘s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.
The 2002 initiative proposed Arab normalization with Israel in exchange for its withdrawal from territories including the Golan Heights, the West Bank, and Gaza. It also called for the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East Jerusalem as its capital.
Throughout the war in Gaza, regional power Saudi Arabia has repeatedly said that establishing ties with Israel was conditional on the creation of an independent Palestinian state.
Israel‘s Saar said it was “not constructive” for other states to condition normalization on Palestinian statehood.
“Our view is that a Palestinian state will threaten the security of the State of Israel,” he said.
In May, Reuters reported that Israel and Syria‘s new Islamist rulers had established direct contact and held face-to-face meetings aimed at de-escalating tensions and preventing renewed conflict along their shared border.
The same month, US President Donald Trump announced the US would lift sanctions on Syria and met Syria‘s new president, urging him to normalize ties with Israel.
The post Israel Eyes Ties With Syria and Lebanon After Iran War first appeared on Algemeiner.com.