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Leaked Harvard University Document Addresses Unlawful Protests in Wake of Anti-Israel Demonstrations
A drone view shows a pro-Hamas encampment at Harvard University where students protest in support of Palestinians, during the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US, April 25, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Brian Snyder
Harvard University is considering a series of policies aimed at preventing the recurrence of the kinds of unauthorized demonstrations that convulsed the campus last academic year and prompted a slew of lawsuits and scandals, according to a leaked draft document.
First reported by The Harvard Crimson, the document, described as “privileged and confidential,” explicitly proscribes “camping,” a clear reference to the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” that students had set up on Harvard Yard and lived in for nearly three weeks between April and May. It also includes rules against noise pollution, chalking messages on school grounds, and staging protests during exam season.
One proposed rule which forbids photographing protesters may serve the interests of pro-Hamas students, who have chanted antisemitic slogans and proclaimed support for terrorism, by allowing them to remain anonymous. The Crimson says the provision will prevent doxxing, but critics maintain that identifying and preventing anti-Zionist demonstrators on Ivy League campuses from taking their place in the elite is necessary for protecting the Jewish community and keeping American institutions free of extremists.
“The purpose of this document is to establish a common set of such university rules for campus space use,” it says. “Organizations and/or individuals who do not comply with these rules may be held financially responsible for any resulting costs incurred and may be subject to other consequences for noncompliance, including referral for discipline.”
How the Crimson, Harvard’s official campus newspaper since 1873, obtained the document is not disclosed in the report. Harvard spokesman Jason Newton told the paper it “may not accurately indicate the current status of guidance regarding a particular topic.” He added that “once the document is finalized, it will be shared with the Harvard community.”
Other Harvard officials, past and present, including former president Larry Summers, commended the document for being “fine and reasonable.” However, Summers told the Crimson, Harvard’s official policies are often in tension with its actions.
“The issue is that the university, over the last year, has consistently failed to act and impose sanctions when policies are violated and has been slow to implement policies on behalf of Jewish student groups,” he explained. “That is why it is subject to multiple federal government investigations and civil suits.”
Summers’ skepticism is shared by the Jewish community and higher education critics who have accused Harvard University of contriving tough talk about discipline and preserving order to temper negative publicity prompted by its alleged refusal to address antisemitism on the campus. Earlier this month, it was reported that school officials awarded most of the degrees it withheld from pro-Hamas protesters as punishment for their participating in the unlawful encampment at Harvard Yard. The decision followed its “downgrading” disciplinary sanctions levied against several other protesters. Neither action led to contrition, however. Instead, the amnestied students proceeded to mock and revile the university anyway, denouncing it as cynical and rapacious while vowing to continue their flouting of school rules.
“Harvard has caved in, showing that the student intifada will always prevail” one of the groups involved in the anti-Israel demonstrations, Harvard Out of Occupied (HOOP), said upon learning of the news. “This reversal is a bare minimum. We call on our community to demand no less than Palestinian liberation from the river to the sea, grounded in the rights of return and resistance. We will not rest until divestment from the Israeli regime is met.”
The past year has been described by experts as a low point in the history of Harvard University, America’s oldest and, arguably, most important institution of higher education. Since the Oct. 7 massacre by Hamas across southern Israel, the school has been accused of fostering a culture of racial grievance and antisemitism, while important donors have suspended funding for programs. In just the past nine months, its first Black president, Claudine Gay, resigned in disgrace after being outed as a serial plagiarist; Harvard faculty shared an antisemitic cartoon on social media; and protesters were filmed surrounding a Jewish student on campus and shouting “Shame!” into his ears.
According to the US House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Harvard has repeatedly misrepresented its handling of the explosion of hate and rule breaking, launching a campaign of deceit and spin to cover up what ultimately became the biggest scandal in higher education.
A report generated by the committee as part of a wider investigation of the school claimed that the university formed an Antisemitism Advisory Group (AAG) largely for show and did not consult its members when Jewish students were subject to verbal abuse and harassment, a time, its members felt, when its counsel was most needed. The advisory group went on to recommend nearly a dozen measures for addressing the problem and offered other guidance, the report said, but it was excluded from high-level discussions which preceded, for example, the December congressional testimony of former president Gay — a hearing convened to discuss antisemitism at Harvard.
So frustrated were a “majority” of AAG members with being an accessory to what the committee described as a guilefully crafted public relations facade that they threatened to resign from it.
Harvard must still tend to outstanding issues which resulted from the events of this past academic year. A congressional investigation of its handling of antisemitism is ongoing and six Jewish students are suing it for allegedly ignoring antisemitism discrimination.
In April, attorneys representing the school attempted to have the suit tossed out of court, arguing that the plaintiffs lack legal standing.
Follow Dion J. Pierre @DionJPierre.
The post Leaked Harvard University Document Addresses Unlawful Protests in Wake of Anti-Israel Demonstrations first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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GPS Disruptions Continue in Iran Weeks After Conflict with Israel
Smoke rises following an Israeli attack in Tehran, Iran, June 18, 2025. Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS
i24 News – Nearly two months after the unprecedented conflict between Iran and Israel, GPS disruptions are still affecting users across Iran, AFP reports.
The interference began after Israel’s surprise attack in mid-June and the 12-day war that followed.
The Iranian Ministry of Communications has cited “security and military reasons” for the interruptions but provided no further details.
For ordinary Iranians, the disruptions have become a daily headache. “I haven’t been able to work for weeks,” said Farshad Fooladi, a Tehran driver using the local ride-hailing app Snapp. “Most of the time is wasted wandering without direction.”
GPS signals are crucial not only for civilian navigation but also for military applications, such as guiding missiles, drones, and rockets. While Iran has previously jammed or hacked satellite signals near sensitive military sites, experts say the current disruptions are the largest and longest-lasting recorded.
In Tehran, already-congested streets have become increasingly difficult to navigate, impacting both drivers and businesses that rely on geolocation. It remains unclear how long the measures will continue or what the economic cost will be for Iranian citizens.
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Trump: ‘Significant Progress with Russia, Stay Tuned’
Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a session of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum. Photo: Reuters/Maxim Shemetov
i24 News – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Sunday in Brussels with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who hosted him at her main office. The visit came as US President Donald Trump suggested “significant progress” in talks with Russia, urging the public to “stay tuned” following his summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
At a joint press conference, von der Leyen pledged the EU’s continued backing for Kyiv. “We will support Ukraine as long as it is required, for a just and lasting peace. There can be no restrictions on the armed forces of Ukraine,” she said. The Commission president called for Ukraine to become a “steel porcupine” against its enemies, stressing investment in the defense industry, particularly drones, and declaring: “International borders cannot be changed by force.”
Von der Leyen also announced plans to advance the EU’s 19th package of sanctions against Russia by September, insisting that “only Ukraine can choose its own fate.” She added that the bloc would do everything possible to support an eventual agreement between Kyiv and Moscow.
Meanwhile, senior US officials signaled an American push toward a negotiated settlement. Trump’s Middle East Envoy Steve Witkoff, told CNN that the president seeks “a ceasefire and a quick peace agreement that will guarantee protection for European countries.” He claimed the Alaska summit yielded “significant security guarantees” for Ukraine and confirmed Washington would discuss potential territorial compromises with Kyiv.
Republican Senator Marco Rubio, speaking on NBC and ABC, described a complex road to peace. “For the war to end, there are things Russia wants that it cannot get, and there are things Ukraine wants that it will not achieve,” he said. While noting that a ceasefire “is still on the table,” Rubio warned that Moscow has yet to agree. He stressed that if no deal is reached, Russia could face “further consequences, including severe sanctions.”
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Syria’s Sharaa Hopes for Kurdish Deal to Prevent Conflict
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
Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has expressed hope that his country would avoid military conflict with US-backed Kurdish forces if efforts to integrate their autonomous administration in northeast Syria into the state structure collapse.
In remarks late on Saturday to senior figures from Idlib, where he has mustered loyalist forces, Sharaa said Kurdish leaders had signaled readiness to move forward with a landmark deal in March to bring their Kurdish-run areas under state authority.
But their actions on the ground suggested otherwise, he told the publicized forum.
“At times on the ground there are signals opposite to what they say in the negotiations,” Sharaa said.
Turkey and Washington, the main powers backing the deal to integrate Syria’s oil-rich northeast into the state, wanted to resolve the issue peacefully, Sharaa said.
“These parties are pushing for a solution peacefully. I hope we don’t enter into a dispute. I am hopeful in a few months we will resolve it,” he said.
The collapse of follow-up talks since the March deal has escalated tensions in the region, triggering fresh clashes this month between government troops and the Kurdish-led, US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF).
The SDF, which controls parts of northeast Syria where Arabs form a majority, has recently fortified extensive tunnel networks along the frontlines. Many tribal Arabs accuse the SDF of discriminatory policies – claims Kurdish officials deny.
CONCERN OVER MAJOR ESCALATION
Turkey-backed rebels have also reinforced their positions amid concerns over a potential large-scale escalation in hostilities, officials say.
Ankara has warned of military action against the SDF, which it considers a terrorist organization and has targeted in past cross-border operations. It expects the Syrian government to address its security concerns but says it reserves the right to mount an offensive if needed.
US envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack – an advocate for a strong, unified Syrian state – voiced concern last month over Kurdish delays in implementing the March deal, urging faster progress.
Authorities in Damascus reacted earlier this month angrily to a recent SDF conference calling for greater decentralization and which demanded a review of a constitutional declaration it said discriminated against minorities, a move officials said threatened Syria’s territorial integrity.
Syrian officials said any military push against the SDF would rely on Turkish-backed factions operating in northern Syria, adding that Ankara has grown impatient with what it sees as Kurdish foot-dragging.
Sharaa said those who sought partition were “dreaming” and insisted the country would not give up any stretch of territory. He also criticized Druze groups seeking support from Israel in their confrontation with Damascus.
Thousands joined a large Druze protest in Sweida on Saturday, demanding self-determination, hoisting Israeli flags and praising Israel for a military intervention that forced Syrian forces to retreat after hundreds of people were killed last month.
Sharaa acknowledged that “violations” had been committed by security forces and army personnel in Sweida, but said Druze militias had also perpetrated crimes.