Faris Khawaja

Overview

Faris Khawaja has spread anti-Semitism, promoted incitement and expressed support for a terrorist. He also spread an anti-Israel conspiracy theory, as well as hatred of Israel, demonized supporters of Israel and expressed support for the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Khawaja was an activist with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at San Diego State University (SDSU) in 2014-2015 and attended the National SJP 2014 Conference.

On December 11, 2016, Khawaja wrote on Facebook that he was “apart [sic] of Watan” “a Palestine-inspired arts shop.” Watan has promoted SJP and sells products that glorify BDS, violence and Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP) terrorist Ghassan Kanafani.

Khawaja indicated on Twitter in February 2015 that he was studying Mechanical Engineering at SDSU. In September 2017, Khawaja’s Facebook page said he was a student at Brooklyn College (Brooklyn), part of the City University of New York (CUNY), studying Computer Science.

As of September 2019, Khawaja’s Facebook page said he was a Blockchain Engineer Intern at Medi Tibb since October 2018.

Also as of September 2019, Khawaja used the name “Faris Kh” on Facebook.

Spreading Anti-Semitism

On September 8, 2016, Khawaja tweeted: “@walker__pierce Well thats a religion, and it probably would be different because Jews run America. Stay in school, kid.”

On November 16, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “@BenjaminDupres You're a dirty f**king Jew who should burn in hell, you ignorant f**k.”

On June 2, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “these f**king jews man.”

On June 18, 2013, Khawaja tweeted: “I'm on a plane filled with f**king Jews.”

On November 28, 2012, Khawaja tweeted: “Hitler killed 6 million jews in the holocaust and 18 million Russians in WW2. We never hear sh*t about the Russians dieing though. #F**kjews.”

Promoting Incitement

On January 13, 2016, Khawaja posted on Facebook: “don't care about stocks and banks, I come from the land where we throw rocks at tanks.”

On November 12, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “It's about time we globalize the intifada.”

On April 23, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “@RT_com third intifada, yalla” in response to an RT article titled “President Abbas threatens to disband Palestinian Authority if Israeli talks fail.”

Supporting a Terrorist

On March 6, 2017, Khawaja posted support on Facebook for suspected terrorist Basel Al Araj, saying: “We honor the martyrs that fall day by day, in the name of our resistance.”

Basel Al Araj was killed in a shoot-out with Israeli troops during an arrest raid. He had been suspected of belonging to a terror cell planning to carry out attacks on Israeli targets. Two M-16 assault rifles and an improvised Carlo-style submachine gun were found inside his home.

Spreading an Anti-Israel Conspiracy Theory

On September 30, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “Sept. 30th 2000, #Israeli forces kill Muhammad Al Dura on the lap of his father. I'll never forget this day”

The Al-Durah hoax is an iconic piece of anti-Israel propaganda, fabricated on September 30, 2000 at the start of the Second Intifada by a France 2 reporter.

Spreading Hatred of Israel

On September 27, 2016, Khawaja tweeted about the death of former Israeli Prime Minister, Shimon Peres: “Polish-born Zionist scum dies. I hope he experiences the eternity of hell, for all the Palestinian blood on his hands.”

On October 15, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “@ArmanKalustov educated discussion is all it is 😘 haha lets just hope ebola spreads to Israel. I'll keep it cynical”

On July 23, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “@NickCampbell94 @dirtymckirdy Thats because Israel doesn't have a legitimate right to exist. There creation was an unjust transfer of lands.”

Demonizing Supporters of Israel

On August 30, 2016, Khawaja tweeted: “NY born-Jewish students on campus trying to convince me they have more tie to the land,than my grandfather whos older than State of Israel😅🔫”

On December 27, 2015, Khawaja tweeted at political activist Chloé Valdary: “@cvaldary I wonder how it feels to be a puppet for Israeli lobbies because you couldn't amount to anything respectable in your life.”

On October 17, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “Cynical Zionists are like the bullies on the playground, whose parents dont love them.”

Supporting BDS

On April 13, 2016, Khawaja posted on Facebook celebrating the University of Chicago passing a divestment resolution as “a huge victory for the BDS movement.” He wrote: “It’s working, folks! Our voices will be heard!”

On November 30, 2014, Khawaja tweeted: “Preparation has begun, and we need to join the others to make history happen. #DivestmentCrew #SJP #SDSUDIVEST.”

Khawaja’s tweet referred to a divestment resolution which was submitted by SJP at SDSU in 2015, to SDSU’s student body as a referendum, to be voted on via a special ballot. The resolution proposed that SDSU “divest from companies involved in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict” (including Hewlett-Packard, Motorola and Lockheed Martin).

SJP SDSU Hosting Anti-Israel Agitators

On November 19, 2014, SDSU SJP held an event featuring anti-Israel poet Remi Kanazi.

Kanazi has justified terrorism, belittled the Holocaust and demonized Jews. He has also supported terrorists, compared Zionists to the KKK and spread hatred of Israel.

On October 22, 2014, SJP SDSU sponsored an event featuring anti-Israel agitator Alison Weir.

Weir is the founder and executive director of the anti-Semitic organization If Americans Knew (IAK). She has reportedly been “a repeat guest of white supremacist Clay Douglas on his hate radio show.” The Anti Defamation League (ADL) has exposed Weir’s propagation of numerous anti-Semitic and anti-Israel conspiracy theories.

On October 21, 2014, SDSU SJP posted on Facebook about hosting Bassem Tamimi.

Bassem Tamimi has exploited young children as political props in staged confrontations with Israeli soldiers. In 2011, he was jailed for organizing violent rallies and inciting minors to commit violent crimes such as rock-throwing.

Tamimi’s United States visa was revoked in 2015, for his failure to disclose his prior arrest and conviction. Prior to the revocation of his U.S. visa, Tamimi delivered a controversial presentation to third-graders in Ithaca, New York. The presentation was geared to foster hatred of Israel and Tamimi concluded by encouraging [00:11:29] the children to become “freedom fighters for Palestine.”

SDSU SJP’s Facebook post said: “Our SJP welcoming Bassem Tamimi to San Diego. Baseem is the head organizer of the popular protests in the West Bank...Baseem explained to us the symbolic nature behind a child and a rock...the children of Palestine have no fear in the face of their oppressor and will never stop resisting…”

SJP SDSU - Dropping Evacuation Leaflets

In November 2014, SJP SDSU dropped approximately 500 leaflets from the top of the student hall, ordering students to evacuate immediately and warning that “Those who fail to comply with the instructions will endanger their lives and the lives of their families.”

According to SDSU’s student newspaper, the Daily Aztec, the dropping of the leaflets “was seen by university officials as a violation of the student code of conduct. Several police officers and administration arrived before the leaflets were dropped.”

SJP

SJP is a student organization engaged in anti-Israel activity on North American college and university campuses.

The first chapter of SJP was founded in 2001 at the University of California at Berkeley by Professor Hatem Bazian. Bazian has spread classic anti-Semitism, reportedly promoted religious anti-Semitism and defended the Hamas terror group. In 2004, Bazian called for “intifada” in America.

SJP organizes anti-Israel campaigns, including running annual Israel Apartheid Weeks, often in collaboration with Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and Muslim Students Association (MSA) campus chapters.

SJP has been a major force in pushing the anti-Semitic Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement on campuses. Chapters have initiated dozens of BDS resolutions in student governments, which have been proposed on or around Jewish holidays, a time when many Jewish students are off-campus.

SJP activists have reportedly physically assaulted, intimidated and harassed Jewish students, disrupted pro-Israel campus events and demonized pro-Israel campus organizations.

Chapters have often endorsed and campaigned for numerous terrorists and whitewashed terrorism.

BDS

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by Omar Barghouti in 2005 to challenge “international support for Israeli apartheid and settler-colonialism.” BDS is an allegedly “Palestinian-led movement,” although leading BDS activists have admitted [00:01:01] this is not true.

One of the demands of BDS includes [point 3] what is generally known as the “right of return,” a demand discredited as a way to eliminate Israel. Barghouti said the “right of return” is a means to “end Israel’s existence as a Jewish state.”

Barghouti has said that BDS “aims to turn Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.”

In his activism, Barghouti has also said [00:05:55] regarding Israel: “Definitely, most definitely, we oppose a Jewish state in any part of Palestine. No…rational Palestinian, not a sellout Palestinian, will ever accept a Jewish state in Palestine.”

The movement has been linked to numerous terrorist organizations and received a public endorsement from Hamas in 2017.

BDS initiatives include calling on institutions and individuals to divest from Israeli-affiliated companies, promoting academic and cultural boycotts of Israel, and organizing anti-Israel rallies, protests and campaigns.

The movement’s most notable achievement has been the infiltration of university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments and student groups, backed by their own anti-Israel members and affiliates, have proposed resolutions on some form of boycott of, or divestment from, Israel and Israeli-affiliated entities.

Boycott resolutions, although non-binding, have been passed by student governments on numerous North American campuses.

BDS activity is often aggressive and disruptive. It has been noted that universities that pass BDS resolutions see a marked increase in anti-Semitic incidents on campus. On one campus, when the student government debated a BDS resolution, reports emerged of violent threats against those opposing it.