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This Is What Happened at Tulane’s Anti-Israel Encampment
While colleges generally pride themselves on being included on various lists, Tulane has now joined a list nobody wants to be on: one of the growing list of American universities that has had an anti-Israel encampment on its campus.
On Monday, April 29, a mob of anti-Israel protesters descended on Tulane’s campus, occupying and setting up a tented encampment on the lawn outside Gibson Hall. Tulane’s anti-Israel encampment is part of a nationwide protest movement in which anti-Israel students and outside activists are occupying university property, disrupting the educational process, and threatening and intimidating Jewish and pro-Israel students.
These protesters at Tulane are not peaceful. All night, they spewed antisemitic slogans on megaphones, chided police officers, and tried to instigate fights with Jewish counter-protesters and observers across the street.
They chanted “From the river to the sea,” a slogan deemed antisemitic by the US Congress. They held signs expressing their solidarity with terrorist groups, bearing slogans such as “long live the Palestinian resistance.” One of their encampment tents featured a sign with a red upside down triangle, a dog-whistle symbol that denotes support for Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups.
Jewish Tulane students were spat on and threatened in the street. Several members of the anti-Israel mob were arrested for setting up tents and clashing with police, and charged with trespassing and battery on police officers.
Tulane University announced in an email that seven protesters were arrested by Tulane Police officers, and that Students for a Democratic Society (SDS), the group responsible for the protest, has been subsequently suspended from campus. However, the email failed to mention that the mob was still raging and occupying campus, and did not mention any plan to remove them before the situation worsened. In a separate email, Michael Fitts, the president of Tulane, addressed the Tulane community around 3 am on Monday night, condemning the protesters in broad terms, but refusing to comment on if and when they would be removed.
Eventually, in a coordinated effort between Tulane Police, New Orleans police, and Louisiana state troopers, Tulane took down the unlawful encampment early Wednesday morning. Although this may be a short-term solution to the problem, it does not quell the underlying issue on college campuses. The anti-Israel, pro-Hamas movement remains lurking in the crevices of college campuses across the country, and they have shown that they are not afraid to trespass, vandalize, and intimidate Jewish students to achieve their radical agenda.
This was not the first disruptive, hateful anti-Israel protest on Tulane’s campus. On October 26, in the immediate aftermath of the horrifying October 7 Hamas massacre, the same group of protesters descended upon the outskirts of Tulane’s campus in a protest that ended with Jewish students being hospitalized and blood spilled on the street. The clash at the October protest led to several of the anti-Israel protesters being charged with hate crimes for their actions on that day.
Despite knowing this latest protest was coming, Tulane was clearly underprepared, and completely lost control of their campus.
This week’s events should not have come as a surprise. SDS has spent the last few months ratcheting up its rhetoric, and the last several days making clear its plans to copy the encampment movement that is spreading across college campuses. Tulane also knew based on events at other universities that this is not a peaceful movement.
At the University of Florida, protesters were arrested for battery of police officers. At George Washington University, protesters smashed through police barriers and clashed with officers. At UCLA, anti-Israel protesters at an encampment linked arms to prevent Jewish students from freely entering their own campus. Pro-Hamas protesters at Columbia University used hammers to bash in the windows of a university building, entering and occupying the site and even holding a facilities worker hostage before later releasing him.
These violent, pro-terror protests and encampments signal a turning point in America. Leftist and anti-Israel groups are no longer willing to engage in discourse or discussion with people who think differently from them. They have turned to violence and instigation. Universities have succumbed to the mobs occupying their campuses, and have refused to enforce their own rules on trespassing, illegal protests, and protecting Jewish students.
I call on Tulane University and all other universities faced with anti-Israel agitators to act swiftly to remove these agitators and not to allow mob rule to reign. The eyes of all Jewish students in America are on you.
Nathaniel Miller is a Tulane University student, where he is the president of the Tulane Israel Public Affairs Committee, and is a CAMERA fellow.
The post This Is What Happened at Tulane’s Anti-Israel Encampment first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Left Off the Itinerary, Reinforced for Battle: How Trump’s Gulf Gambit Secretly Fortified Israel
US President Donald Trump walks to board Air Force One as he departs Al Udeid Air Base, en-route to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, in Doha, Qatar, May 15, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Brian Snyder
President Donald Trump’s four-day Middle East tour, which included stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates — but conspicuously omitted Israel — was widely interpreted as sidelining America’s closest regional ally.
Yet, beneath the surface of diplomatic optics, there was a deliberate strategy aimed at strengthening a broader anti-Iran coalition and ultimately reinforcing the enduring US–Israel partnership. By cultivating economic and security ties with Gulf monarchies while cautioning against over-reliance on these often-volatile regimes — and by engaging Syria’s new Islamist-led government with a wary eye toward its unpredictability — Washington recalibrated its regional engagement in a way that safeguards both American and Israeli interests.
The tour’s centerpiece was a suite of investment and defense agreements reportedly amounting to over $700 billion, a figure that, while inflated by non-binding memoranda, underscores the administration’s transactional approach to diplomacy. By emphasizing concrete deals in aviation, artificial intelligence, and energy, the United States sought to bind Gulf states more closely to its strategic orbit, creating an environment in which Israel’s security is bolstered by a network of moderate Arab partners sharing a common concern over Iranian hegemony.
Yet the Gulf is far from monolithic or immutable. The ruling houses in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi preside over monarchies riddled with human rights abuses and opaque power struggles, where secretive succession protocols threaten sudden policy reversals.
Saudi Arabia’s al-Saud clan, despite cosmetic “Vision 2030” reforms, continues to enforce the restrictive kafala labor system and quash dissent, leaving its internal transition vulnerable to elite infighting. In Abu Dhabi, appointing the president’s son as crown prince does little more than entrench a repressive regime and underscores how swiftly top-level changes can unsettle long-term commitments. Even Qatar — though it hosts the region’s largest US base — juggles covert support for Islamist factions and fluctuating ties with Iran and Turkey, demonstrating how easily Doha’s allegiance could shift and undermine Washington’s strategic plans.
Moreover, the tour’s engagement with Syria — marked by Trump’s meeting with interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa and the announcement of lifted US sanctions — raises additional concerns. Syria’s new government, born of war and shaped by Islamist factions, remains fragile; sporadic violence and extremist cells continue to threaten stability, illustrating how quickly alliances can unravel in Damascus.
Although lifting sanctions on Syria may disrupt Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance” by drawing Damascus away from Tehran, the long-term reliability of al-Sharaa’s regime is far from assured, and a swift reversal could leave Israel and the United States exposed to renewed chaos.
Against this backdrop of cautious engagement, Israel’s strategic autonomy emerges as a critical asset. Israel possesses one of the world’s most advanced defense and intelligence capabilities, enabling it to manage localized threats even as Washington brokers broader coalitions. Congressional appropriations continue to help aid an Israeli qualitative military edge with funding for Iron Dome, David’s Sling, and Arrow systems, underscoring that US commitment to Israel’s defense remains unwavering. These guarantees ensure that — even if Gulf partners falter — Israel’s security is anchored by direct American support.
Importantly, building ties with Gulf states need not come at the expense of Israel’s primacy in US policy. Rather, it can broaden the coalition confronting Iran’s regional ambitions and diminish extremist recruitment by promoting economic development and stability. Gulf investment projects in tourism, technology, and infrastructure can undercut the socioeconomic conditions that feed radical ideologies, indirectly reducing threats to Israel and US interests alike. Yet policymakers must safeguard against potential asset forfeiture by encouraging transparent governance reforms in Gulf monarchies — such as codified succession rules and enhanced civil institutions — that mitigate the risk of abrupt policy reversals.
Syria exemplifies the perils of overoptimism in diplomatic outreach. While normalizing ties with Damascus could theoretically fragment Iran’s proxy network, the historical pattern in Syria is one of rapid shifts—from Assad’s authoritarianism to rebel fragmentation, to Iranian and Russian entrenchment, and now to an Islamist-led interim administration. Each transition has altered the balance of power, and any assurance today is contingent upon al-Sharaa’s ability to maintain unity among disparate factions. A resurgence of extremist violence or a capitulation to hardline elements would not only nullify recent US gains, but also pose fresh dangers to the region and Israel’s northern frontier.
Recognizing the inherent fragility of Gulf and Syrian regimes, American decision-makers must tread carefully — engaging pragmatically with regional partners, yet never losing sight of the fact that Israel remains the most reliable guarantor of stability in a tumultuous region. By maintaining this dual approach, the United States can fortify an expanded security architecture that delivers enduring peace and protects its most vital ally.
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 Left Off the Itinerary, Reinforced for Battle: How Trump’s Gulf Gambit Secretly Fortified Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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NBC News Is Quietly Rewriting Its Own Reporting on the Gaza War to Vilify Israel
Partygoers at the Supernova Psy-Trance Festival running to safety during the Hamas attack on Oct. 7, 2023, as seen in the documentary “Supernova: The Music Festival Massacre.” Photo: Screenshot
The most recent example came buried in a news report that casually claimed Israel had unilaterally broken a ceasefire with Hamas — a striking departure from what the same outlet had previously reported.
This is part of NBC’s increasingly disturbing trend: a pattern in which its journalists appear to be reshaping the facts in Gaza — not because new evidence has emerged, but because the old facts no longer serve the narrative.
And these aren’t obscure details NBC somehow missed. These are facts the news outlet had already acknowledged. Now, they’re being walked back — replaced with a storyline that casts Israel as the aggressor and Hamas as the victim, resulting in some of the most distorted coverage of the conflict in recent months.
The “Shattered” Truce That Had Merely Run Its Course
Among the issues NBC has fumbled most egregiously is the temporary ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas, struck in January 2025 and that expired in March — after Hamas refused to move forward with the next stage of the deal, which would have required it to release the remaining Israeli hostages kidnapped on October 7.
At the time, NBC got it right. On March 1, its headline declared the “Gaza ceasefire [was] in doubt,” citing the expiration of the deal and the lack of ongoing negotiations. The subheading noted that Israel wanted to extend the truce — though, tellingly, NBC left out that Hamas’ refusal stemmed from the hostage issue.
But within weeks, that reporting had been scrubbed from memory.
By April 17, NBC was writing that Israeli forces had “shattered the fragile truce” the previous month –implying that the breakdown of the agreement was an Israeli initiative, not a consequence of Hamas stonewalling the next phase.
Actually, no @NBCNews. Israeli forces didn’t “shatter the fragile truce” — the ceasefire deal expired and Hamas refused to agree to an extension.
And Hamas still refuses to end the war the only way it can: by disarming and releasing the hostages.
But sure, blame Israel. pic.twitter.com/fjMjtZLsEd
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) April 17, 2025
HonestReporting flagged the shift in real time on social media. NBC responded — sort of — by quietly amending later stories to acknowledge that the deal had expired. But even in those updates, the narrative remained skewed, still placing blame for the truce’s collapse squarely on Israel.
Other NBC articles have since repeated similar wording — smuggling revisionism into coverage while pretending to offer clarity.
And that simply isn’t good enough. If a news outlet can’t keep its own reporting straight — or worse, is willing to rewrite it to match a shifting narrative — why should anyone trust it?
Recasting Roles: From Extremists to “Artists with a Message”
NBC’s editorial distortions aren’t limited to military timelines. Over the past several months, HonestReporting has repeatedly called out the network for its bizarrely sanitized treatment of terrorism and terror apologists.
A recent example: NBC reported that Irish band Kneecap had been dropped by their US agent over their “pro-Palestinian stance.” In reality, the band was dropped for openly supporting Hamas and Hezbollah — proscribed terrorist organizations under US law.
NBC’s piece framed the backlash as mere “criticism” of the band’s “anti-Israel messaging” during their Coachella set, and prominently featured Kneecap’s claim that it was all part of a “coordinated smear campaign.”
What NBC didn’t emphasize? That the band is under investigation in the UK for encouraging fans to murder Conservative MPs and has repeatedly promoted pro-terror messages on stage. Even their name is a not-so-subtle reference to IRA-style violence associated with the Irish terrorist organization.
In short: NBC tried to rehabilitate a group glorifying terrorism, casting them as misunderstood political artists instead of what they actually are — extremists with a mic. It’s not the first time either. NBC previously had to issue a correction after describing convicted Palestinian terrorists as “hostages” during an earlier phase of the ceasefire.
Rewriting a Massacre into an “Escalation”
Perhaps most disturbing is NBC’s recent tendency to revise the single event that launched the current war: the October 7 massacre.
That day, Hamas launched an unprecedented surprise attack on Israel during an active ceasefire — murdering, raping, and kidnapping civilians in their homes, at a music festival, and on the streets. It was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust.
Most media outlets still refer to October 7 as a turning point, or at the very least, acknowledge it as the opening act of the war.
But NBC has opted for something else entirely: describing the massacre as a “major escalation in a decades-long conflict.”
Seriously, @NBCNews? Calling Hamas’s October 7 massacre a “major escalation”?
Reminder: Israel and Hamas were NOT at war in 2023. Hamas didn’t “escalate”—they launched a brutal war, and now refuse to end it by releasing the hostages they kidnapped. pic.twitter.com/ZCvhvRKnsT
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) May 7, 2025
That’s not just inaccurate. It’s obscene.
There was no “escalation.” Hamas didn’t escalate a war. They started one. They did not respond to Israeli aggression — they initiated it by butchering civilians in their beds and live-streaming the carnage.
When a major news outlet rewrites its own reporting, downplays terrorism, and rebrands mass murder as a mere escalation, something has gone deeply wrong.
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 NBC News Is Quietly Rewriting Its Own Reporting on the Gaza War to Vilify Israel first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Five Reasons Israel’s Eurovision Song Was One of the Best
Yuval Raphael from Israel with the title “New Day Will Rise” on stage at the second semi-final of the 69th Eurovision Song Contest in the Arena St. Jakobshalle. Photo: Jens Büttner/dpa via Reuters Connect
Yuval Raphael’s majestic performance of the song “New Day Will Rise” earned Israel second place in the famed Eurovision competition that took place over the weekend in Switzerland. Here are the five reasons why the song placed so high:
1. Raphael’s voice: Raphael was vocally flawless, beginning the song in a soft tone, and building gradually until belting out the chorus with some raspiness thrown in and perfectly navigated trills.
2. Versatility: Raphael performed the song beginning in English, going to a bit of French, and throwing in some of her native Hebrew, and sounded authentic and on point in all languages.
3. Well-Constructed Song: The lyrics were powerful beginning with “And even if you say goodbye, you’ll never go away/ you are the rainbows in my sky my colors in the grey …”
In contrast to the melancholy verse, the chorus is uplifting: “New day will rise life will go on/Everyone cries, don’t cry alone/Darkness will fade all the pain will go by/But we will stay even if you say goodbye.”
While it is understood the lyrics refer to the attack of October 7, there is no specific reference to it and the song has universal appeal to resonate with people upset about any conflict or any loss.
4. Performed With Great Poise Despite Hate From Antisemites: Even if one doesn’t like Israel, to boo or have jeers against Raphael, who survived the attack at the Nova Festival on October 7, shows someone has no class.
CNN outdid itself, managing to show anti-Israel bias in a music article, as its writer Rob Picheta wrote that Israel was the 20th best song (despite placing second). He called Hamas a “militant” group rather than a terrorist group. Rather than give the song an iota of credit, he wrote that the song is weaker than last year’s by Eden Golan. I disagree. But the point is in his “analysis” of 26 songs by respective countries, only did Israel get such a critique that it was musically worse than the previous year. Raphael was unfazed by the haters — she carried on amazingly despite the pressure and the harassment, and it’s a credit to what Raphael is made of.
5. Emotional Impact: A majority of the Eurovision songs were dance tracks that were instantly forgettable. Besides having a powerful voice, Raphael’s delivery made the audience feel an emotional connection. The song is easily relatable, and Raphael’s vocals made me cry. A quick look at YouTubers evaluating her song showed people from different countries all agreeing on the song’s emotional resonance and power.
Should Israel have won Eurovision? Obviously, I think so — but I also would have been surprised if there was a fair result. Austria took first place with “Wasted Love” by JJ More, which I didn’t like. The song that came in third, “Espresso Macchiato,” would have been well suited for “Saturday Night live” but not any real music competition. Ukraine’s “Bird of Pray” by Ziferblat deserved much higher than ninth place.
It was great to see Israel once again stand out for artistry, creativity, and musical excellence, and while it should have taken the top spot, second place in such a competition is extremely impressive.
The author is a writer based in New York.
The post Five Reasons Israel’s Eurovision Song Was One of the Best first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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