Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claims that “anti-Semitic gangs” have taken over leading US universities – and demands that US authorities step in and “stop” the students who are critical of Israel.
– They call for the annihilation of Israel, they attack Jewish students, they attack Jewish faculty, Netanyahu claimed in a speech, comparing the protesting youths to the persecution of Jews during World War II.
– This is reminiscent of what happened in German universities in the 1930s. It’s unconscionable. It has to be stopped. It has to be condemned unequivocally, he demands, adding that the students want not only “Death to Israel” but also “Death to the United States”.
The neoconservative politician complains that there is “an antisemitic surge” in the US and claims that Israel’s invasion of Gaza and expulsion of its population is only to “protect itself from genocidal terrorists hiding among the civilian population”.
– We have to stop antisemitism because antisemitism is the canary in the coal mine. It always precedes larger conflagrations that engulf the entire world.
JUST IN: Columbia University has announced classes will be remote for the rest of the year as anti-Israel protests rock the school.
There are now growing calls for tuition refunds for the $70k a year college now that it has practically turned into an online school.
"It’s vital… pic.twitter.com/PdeYnG9cA6
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) April 23, 2024
Demands raise eyebrows
However, not everyone is impressed with Netanyahu’s demand that US authorities “stop” pro-Palestinian protests on American campuses – with many pointing to the constitutionally protected and far-reaching freedom of expression in the US.
The students – who have camped out and blocked entrances to several universities – are demanding that their schools cancel all contracts with Israel and stop doing business with companies that enable or facilitate the ongoing war in Gaza.
“First we get robbed to fund your war and now the leader of a foreign nation demands government officials crack down on the speech of college kids. This is infuriating beyond belief”, commented libertarian pundit Clint Russell on X.
Others point out that it is Israel that has now killed tens of thousands of civilians, and that similar protests are taking place in Israel – and that opponents of Israel’s bloody war have long demonstrated outside Netanyahu’s home and office.
This is what the outside of your house looks like.
Are these Israelis also Näzis?pic.twitter.com/DMtmN6uUgC
— ADAM (@AdameMedia) April 24, 2024
In the past, similar actions have been used, with varying degrees of success, to sway public opinion in the wake of the wars in Vietnam and Iraq.
In several cases, protests have led to clashes with police, and large numbers of students have been arrested. Protesters have accused police and prison guards of abusing and brutalizing peaceful activists, while police and more pro-Israeli actors say some protesters have engaged in rock-throwing and other violence.
