Anti-Israel illegal encampments, initiated on college campuses across the United States, have now been spreading all around the world. In many cases, they have featured intimidation and attacks that have placed Jews and supporters of Israel in physical danger, with some even hospitalized.

The situation has deteriorated so much to the point that Columbia University and others have canceled or changed graduation ceremonies. Overall, many Jewish students have reported feeling extremely unsafe, and lawlessness has spread to many campuses.

It comes as no surprise that the Palestinian Authority (PA) gives these hate fests its overwhelming support, since the PA is often the source of the talking points for the anti-Israel movement.

A recurring libel to delegitimize Israel at these demonstrations has been the fundamental message of PA ideology — that the State of Israel is a colonialist implant and therefore has no right to exist.

Fatah’s youth movement, Shabiba, in its statement of thanks to students in the United States and at Columbia University in particular, called the conflict with Israel a “war of occupation” that “has been continuing for more than 75 years,” meaning since the establishment of the modern State of Israel.

The Fatah Shabiba [Youth] Movement expressed its appreciation for the student protest movement at the American universities supporting the Palestinian cause … [At] a time when our Palestinian people is dealing wherever it is with a policy of discrimination and apartheid and with the war of occupation, which has been continuing for more than 75 years [i.e., since the establishment of modern Israel], this important, historic, and unprecedented student protest movement comes to support the Palestinian cause… [emphasis added]

[Wafa, official PA news agency, April 27, 2024]

The statement of thanks, which was published by the PA’s official news agency, has a picture of a protestor at Columbia University waving a Palestinian flag covered by the Fatah Shabiba Youth Movement logo.

Besides thanking the students, Shabiba also leveled fierce criticism at any attempt by the authorities to finally restore a semblance of order to campus. It totally disregarded the antisemitism so prevalent at these protests by passing them off as “false accusations … on the pretext of antisemitism … in a manner that contradicts democratic principles and values:”

The Fatah Shabiba Movement condemned the attacks against the protesting students and the lecturers at the American universities, the blow to their right to express an opinion and to assembly, the hurling of false accusations against them on the pretext of ‘Antisemitism,’ the arrest of a number of the students, and the exaggeratedly violent treatment of them by the police officers and those opposing this historic protest movement.

It expressed its opposition to all the punitive measures and suspension decisions taken against a number of the male students, female students, and lecturers, in a manner that contradicts the democratic principles and values that the US has waved around as a slogan since its establishment. [emphasis added]

On official PA TV, a prominent journalist also hurled criticism at the attempts to restore order, saying that they were a defense of evil:

Egyptian state-owned paper Al Gomhuria Deputy Editor-in-Chief Ihab Nafea: “The stubborn behavior in managing the crisis by Columbia University President [Minouche Shafik] — she is attempting to gain favor with the American administration and is presenting herself as being against what is happening, but I think she will pay a heavy price for this because in the end, she is defending evil and the students are defending justice.”

[Official PA TV, Capital of Capitals, May 6, 2024]

The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) indicated through an official Fatah spokesperson on official PA news that the protests were the culmination of a longstanding coordinated effort by Palestinian communities in the US:

PLO Executive Committee member Osama Al-Qawasmi expressed his appreciation for the student protest movement that supports the Palestinian cause at the universities of the US and some other states. In a statement to [the official PA] radio [station] The Voice of Palestine, he explained that this protest movement came as a result of an effort that the Palestinian communities there have made for many years … [emphasis added]

[WAFA, official PA news agency, May 1, 2024]

The notion that these protests are part of a greater coordinated effort was also asserted on official PA TV by a prominent Palestinian activist in the US:

This is what makes us happy in the American arena and this is part of the fruits of the ongoing labor that has been conducted by the Arab, Palestinian, and Islamic communities and the supporters in the American arena…

What is currently happening in the American arena is a shout to humanity, a shout against oppression, a shout to support the Palestinians, and a shout to this [American] administration that has not relinquished its Zionism and its positions, which joined itself to the occupation state in its war of annihilation against our people in the Gaza Strip in particular and in the West Bank and Palestine in general.” [emphasis added]

[Palestinian activist in the US Hayel Mansour, Official PA TV, April 26, 2024]

Finally, the PA’s goal of delegitimizing Israel to the point that it would lead to the state’s destruction was reiterated in a recent PA TV broadcast:

Arab American paper Al-Hawadeth Editor-in-Chief Adnan Khalil: “In practice, the occupation state [i.e., Israel] cannot live without the world and without the wealthy capitalist states. It was always — it was planted by Western colonialism; it was supported and is still supported [by it]. Without this, we would not be talking about Israel that we know today, which can defeat or confront the Arab states, the Arab people, and the Palestinian people, because the Palestinian people are being crushed by this state, by American weapons, and by support from the American politicians.

Now, as the [American] masses have turned against these regimes, this is a very big thing, very big and very influential. We will see the liberation of Palestine in our lifetime without a doubt. This undoubtedly gives us hope, and we will yet see this liberation in our lifetime.” [emphasis added]

[Official PA TV, April 30, 2024]

Through its hate speech, the PA leadership has manipulated university students around the world into thinking that by fighting Jews and Israel, they are fighting colonialism and imperialism. And as events worldwide have demonstrated, the PA hate propaganda has been very effective.

Ephraim D. Tepler is a contributor to Palestinian Media Watch (PMW). Itamar Marcus is PMW’s Founder and Director. A version of this article originally appeared at PMW.

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