Israeli Universities Offer 'Support' to Jewish Students, Faculty
AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File
Several universities in Israel have called out the increasing antisemitism happening on university and college campuses in the United States, offering “support” to faculty and students.
In a joint letter released on Friday, the presidents of universities such as Tel-Aviv University, the University of Haifa, the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Ariel University, and the Bar-Ilan University addressed the “severe violence, antisemitism, and anti-Israel sentiment” happening on university campuses in the U.S.
“We, the presidents of the research universities in Israel, express our deep concern over the recent surge of severe violence, antisemitism, and anti-Israel sentiment across numerous leading universities in the United States,” the joint letter said. “These disturbing events are often organized and supported by Palestinian groups, including those recognized as terrorist organizations. This troubling development has led to a climate where Israeli and Jewish students and faculty members feel compelled to hide their identities or avoid campuses altogether for fear of physical harm.”
The presidents of the universities continued to note that, “freedom of expression and the right to demonstrate” are important to the “health of any democracy,” but added that this did not include the “right to engage in violence, make threats against communities, or call for the destruction of the State of Israel.”
“We offer our support to the Jewish and Israeli students and faculty facing these difficult circumstances,” the letter added. “We will do our best to assist those of them who wish to join Israeli universities and find a welcoming academic and personal home.”
The joint letter comes as pro-Palestinian protests and encampments have been established on campuses like Columbia University, Yale University, New York University, the University of North Carolina, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and George Washington University.
Since the encampments and protests have started, students on several campuses have been suspended and arrested, and graduation ceremonies have been canceled.
A letter from Obed Rabinovitch, the Senior Executive Vice President at the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, posted to X, invited “all faculty and students” to join in on studying and teaching at their campuses.
Israeli universities are offering spots to people in US universities who don’t feel safe. This is circulating at @MIT right now. People will certainly take them up on the offer.
There is a Jewish brain drain going on elite US universities. We should all be concerned about the… pic.twitter.com/ltTBvVlfeG
— Talia Khan (@TaliaKhan_MIT) April 26, 2024
On October 7, 2023, Hamas, a U.S.-designated Islamic terror group launched a land, sea, and air attack on Israel, leaving 1,200 people dead and more than 200 people taken as hostages.
In the aftermath of the attack, Israel launched a self-defense operation in the Hamas-controlled territory of Gaza.
Since Hamas's attack, antisemitic sentiment in the U.S. has skyrocketed, and pro-Palestinian protests have increased.
Breitbart News reached out to Ariel University, the Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, and the University of Haifa for a statement but did not receive a response by the time of publication.
Source link