Jana Al-Akhras
Overview
Jana Al-Akhras whitewashed the terror group Hamas and expressed support for terrorists while she was the President of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the Ohio State University (OSU), in 2012-2013.Al-Akhras also participated in a 2009 “Viva Palestina” convoy to Gaza that met with Hamas leaders.
Al-Akhras has defended violent protesters, demonized Israel and expressed support for United States Congresswoman Ilhan Omar, after Omar was condemned for making anti-Semitic remarks.
Al-Akhras remained active with OSU SJP, formerly known as the Committee for Justice in Palestine (CJP), from 2013-2016 and attended the 2012 National SJP Conference.
Al-Akhras also was involved in OSU Boycott, Divestment Sanctions (BDS) campaigns and demonized normalization between Palestinians and Israelis.
As of October 2019, Al-Akras’s LinkedIn page said she was “In House Counsel (Legal Fellow)” at OSU since January 2018.
Her LinkedIn page said that she received her law degree at OSU’s Moritz College of Law in 2017, where she served as Managing Editor of Ohio State Journal of Criminal Law, Secretary of International Law Society.
Al-Akhras’s LinkedIn also said she was a Mentor for the JD/LLM Mentoring Program, a Themis Campus Representative and an Instructor for Dispute Resolution Youth at OSU’s Moritz College of Law.
She received a bachelor’s degree in International Studies from OSU in 2013.
Whitewashing Hamas
Al-Akhras added [00:01:40]: “If I do not agree with the means that are being used, you do not agree with the means that are being used, that is fine. You are not an occupied person, I am not an occupied person. Who are we to tell those who are occupied how to defend themselves.”
Israel launched OPD to stop Hamas rocket attacks on Israeli civilians from Gaza. Over the course of eight days in November 2012, Palestinian terrorist groups fired more than 1,500 rockets at Israel. The majority struck Israel, damaging homes, schools and other civilian areas. Human Rights Watch noted: “Palestinian armed groups made clear in their statements that harming civilians was their aim.”
That same day, Al-Akhras tweeted: “Who are we to tell occupied people how to resist their occupiers.”
She also tweeted: “F**k politics.This is an attack on humanity. Wake up. #gazaunderattack #Gaza”
Support for Terrorists
On November 4, 2012, Al-AKhras tweeted: “We were fortunate enough to receive a personal video message from Khader Adnan, the face of the Palestinian....”Khader Adnan was a senior member of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist organization. A 2007 YouTube video showed Adnan praising and encouraging suicide bombings: "Who among you will carry the next explosive belt? Who among you will fire the next bullets? Who among you will have his body parts blown all over?” In May 2023, Adnan died in prison after refusing medical treatment during a hunger strike.
Hana Shalabi is reportedly a supporter of the terror group Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). Shalabi was arrested in 2012 for alleged “involvement in planned attacks” by PIJ.
On February 21, 2012, Al-Akhras tweeted: “#khaderadnan serves as an inspiration to us all, they may have temporarily taken his freedom but his dignity is very much intact.”
On February 20, 2012, Al-Akhras promoted an OSU CJP letter on Facebook and posed for a photo campaign in support of Adnan.
The letter suggested Adnan was “innocent” and called him an “average citizen.” The letter also said: “Regardless of what party or political affiliation you associate with, standing with Khader Adnan is standing on the side of humanity.”
On February 16, 2012, Al-Akhras tweeted: “Khader Adnan is a hero, and heroes live forever #Khader61days.”
“Viva Palestina” Convoy
On December 26, 2009, Al-Akhras posted to Facebook that she was participating in the 2009 “Viva Palestina” convoy and that she was interviewed by Al-Jazeera for her participation.On April 5, 2010, Al-Akhras wrote a blog post on the “Central Ohio Muslim News” blog detailing her experiences on the convoy.
“Viva Palestina” was established in 2009, during Operation Cast Lead (OCL), by a group of people, including former Member of Parliament, George Galloway.
The convoy met [00:03:13] with Hamas leaders, including Hamas representative in Lebanon Osama Hamdan, deputy Hamas leader Musa Abu Marzook [00:02:40] and Hamas political leader Khaled Meshaal. Galloway reportedly personally presented Hamas with £25,000 in cash.
In Jordan, en route to Gaza, convoy participants attended a welcoming rally, featuring a speaker who chanted [00:03:37]: “Allah is our goal...Jihad is our path. Death for the sake of Allah is our most exalted desire.”
The speaker also invoked [00:05:10] the names of terrorists, including Yahyia Ayyash, known as the Engineer of Death, the chief bombmaker for Hamas during the mid-1990’s. Ayyash manufactured the explosives used [00:03:33] in numerous suicide bombings that targeted Jewish civilians.
In 2014, “Viva Palestina” lost its charitable status failure regarding “the basic requirement to keep receipts and records of income and expenditure and so be able to properly account for charitable funds raised and spent.”
Defending Violent Protesters
In May 2018, violent riots, instigated by Hamas on the Israeli-Gaza border, saw thousands of rioters attempting numerous breaches of Israel’s border fence, with participants declaring their intention to harm Jews across the border.
On May 16, 2018, a Hamas senior official stated that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during a May 14 protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed that three of its members were killed at the same protest.
Media reports confirmed [00:00:20] the March of Return protesters’ breaches and attempted breaches of Israel’s border fence, some by armed Palestinians. On May 15, 2018, senior Hamas official, Mahmoud Al-Zahhar, said that the Gaza protests were under a pretext of “peaceful resistance.”
On December 21, 2017, Al-Akhras posted to Facebook: “Ahed Tamini [sic] is a hero” and attached a video glorifying Ahed Tamimi.
Demonizing Israel
On July 7, 2015, Al-Akhras tweetedat Snapchat with a screenshot of a tweet that labeled the Israeli coastal city of Tel Aviv “a colony built upon the stolen Palestinian city of Yaffa” and claimed the beaches “double as mass graves.”
On February 23, 2015, Al-Akhras tweeted: “Gazans live in what has been deemed the worlds largest open air prison. Over 70% of the population lives on under $1 a day.”
On August 1, 2014, during Operation Protective Edge (OPE), Al-Akhras tweeted: “Casualties in Gaza have exceeded Operation Cast Lead. 1,444 souls stolen.”
Israel commenced OPE in July 2014 to stop rocket fire targeting Israeli civilians and to destroy Hamas attack tunnels.
On July 18, 2014, Al-Akhras tweeted: “There is still time to stand on the right side of history. #GazaUnderAttack”
She also tweeted: “How we allowed the genocide of a people to occur and worse, how some justified these actions.”
That same day, Al-Akhras tweeted: “There will come a time when future generations will look back in history and wonder why we did/said so little against these atrocities.”
On July 15, 2014, Al-Akhras tweeted: “I could watch CNN's horrible reporting on the massacre in Gaza. Or I could jump rope on hot coals. Same amount of discomfort.”
On July 9, 2014, Al-Akhras posted on Instagram, accusing Israel of “Collective Punishment.”
On April 16, 2014, Al-Akhras tweeted: “Does Israel have the right to exist as a Jewish state? This claim is stating that Israel has the right to be racist.” She attributed the statement to Ali Abunimah, co-founder of the anti-Israel website Electronic Intifada (EI).
That same day Al-Akhras tweeted: “The concept itself is inherently racist and discriminatory.”
On November 3, 2012, Al-Akhras tweeted: “Gaza is an open air prison...It has been declared a humanitarian catastrophe...No less than a genocidal project. #SJPConf.”
That same day, Al-Akhras tweeted: “This particular 2 state solution has led, continued, and facilitated the ethnic cleansing of a people #SJPConf.”
On February 24, 2012, Al-Akhras tweeted: “I don't want to hear your bs [bulls**t] about being a zionist and pro-pali at the same time. If you can’t respect my holy places please #stfu [shut the f**k up].”
On September 8, 2011, Al-Akhras tweeted: “#TheLastTimeIChecked, Israel was an apartheid state.”
On February 8, 2011, Al-Akhras tweeted: “@lilpalmtree i’m about to fight him. he’s avoiding everything i’ve said. BECAUSE ZIONISM ISN’T LEGITIMATE.”
On January 19, 2010, Al-Akhras claimed on Facebook: “Without any prior precaution or coordination with Gazan authorities, Israeli authorities have opened one of the largest water dams located on the border of Gaza, causing major flooding, injuring hundreds and trapping thousands of Gazans in their homes.”
Al Jazeera retracted a similar claim in 2015 when, after stating that Israel had “opened a number of dams, which had resulted in a part of Gaza being flooded,” it was discovered that there are no dams in Israel that could flood Gaza.
Defending Anti-Semitic Comments
OSU CJP Activism
The group posed in front of a mock “apartheid wall,” meant to simulate Israel’s security barrier, during Israel Apartheid Week (IAW).
On March 9, 2014, Al-Akhras posed in a OSU CJP photo posted to Facebook, standing in front of an installation meant to mock Israel’s security barrier and holding a sign that said: “I support Israel Apartheid Week because my refugee status is inherited #Rethink2014.”
Israel’s security barrier, 97 percent of which is a low chain-link barrier, was built as a deterrent to Palestinian terror attacks. The concrete portions of the fence were built in response to Palestinian sniper attacks.
On August 24, 2013, Al-Akhras appeared in an OSU CJP photo, leading a protest, alongside fellow OSU CJP activist Bilal El-Yousseph.
El-Yousseph was sentenced to prison in 2019 for “brandishing a firearm during, and in relation to, drug trafficking.” El-Yousseph is an anti-Israel activist who has spread hatred of Israel and led multiple anti-Israel demonstrations and rallies.
On March 21, 2013, Al-Akhras posted to Facebook: “You’ve got until 4 to join The Committee for Justice in Palestine, CJP at The Ohio State University in our Apartheid Wall event! Join us in spray painting this wall, interacting with our ‘soldiers’ and knocking it down!.”
On November 12, 2012, Al-Akhras spoke at an OSU SJP “die-in,” where she claimed [00:01:22] that Operation Cast Lead (OCL) was “a massacre.” She added [00:01:25] “the Gazans are being ethnically cleansed” and called [00:02:34] for BDS against Israel.
Israel commenced Operation Cast Lead (OCL)in 2008-09 in order to stop Hamas rocket fire from Gaza targeting Israeli civilians. In 2010, Hamas admitted that nearly 700 of the Palestinian casualties in OCL were combatants.
Promoting BDS
On January 30, 2015,Al-Akhras tweeted: “Follow @OSUDivest. Let's make this happen, Buckeyes!”OSU Divest was established in January 2015 and claimed in 2017 that by “advocating for divestment from corporations, we are not condemning or attacking a country, a community, or a people,” and “does not support any particular political stance.”
On February 3, 2015, Al-Akhras participated in a photo campaign to promote OSU Divest.
In March 2015, OSU Divest introduced a BDS resolution at OSU’s University Student Government (USG). The divestment resolution was voted down.
On March 5, 2015, Al-Akhras posted a statement on Instagram and Facebook promoting OSU Divest. In both posts, Al-Akhras claimed that by voting to divest from Israel, OSU students have the “chance to stand on the right side of history.”
On March 9, 2015, Al-Akhras tweeted: “USG at OSU has done everything in its power to silence the Divestment initiative in a grossly discriminatory manner. This isn’t over.”
That same day, Al-Akhras also promoted OSU Divest’s petition to Facebook and posted her own statement in support of OSU Divest to Facebook.
In March 2016, OSU Divest worked closely with SJP OSU board members to present another divestment resolution to the USG.
On March 23, 2016, Al Akhras spoke at the pre-vote discussion of the 2016 bill, delivering a statement that she posted on Facebook the next day. The statement alleged the companies listed in the resolution “aid war crimes.”
During the pre-vote discussion, which was published by the secretary of the USG, OSU Divest activists accused Israel of “apartheid.” One activist claimed that U.S. presidential election candidates “all paraded to AIPAC [American Israel Public Affairs Committee] to pledge allegiance to a foreign government.”
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) is a “bipartisan organization of U.S. citizens committed solely to strengthening, protecting and promoting the U.S.-Israel relationship.” AIPAC hosts a yearly policy conference in Washington D.C.
The 2016 resolution failed in a secret ballot by 21-9 votes, with 15 abstentions.
On March 23, 2016, Al-Akhras tweeted: “My statement to USG re: #OSUDivest” and linked to her Facebook statement from the same day, that declared: “As an OSU student, I simply do not wish to be complacent in the investment of companies that aid war crimes.” Al-Akhras also compared Israel to South-Africa during apartheid.
On December 7, 2016, Al-Akhras spoke against Ohio anti-BDS bill HB 476, claiming [00:00:20] it was “not for the benefit of constituents” and that [00:00:23] “this bill would put the allegiances towards a foreign nation ahead of the allegiances of your fellow statesmen.”
Demonizing Israeli- Palestinian Cooperation
On April 17, 2014, Al-Akhras tweeted: “‘BDS is about de-normalization’ - @AliAbunimah @CJPOSU.”Proponents of the “anti-normalization” policy seek to police all interactions between Israelis and Palestinians and shut down all conversations and interactions perceived as being ideologically unaligned with their own agenda. They believe “liberal Zionist” dialogue with Palestinians “normalizes” entrenched power dynamics. This policy was originally dictated by the BDS National Committee (BNC), which prioritized the “Monitoring & Rapid Response” against interactions that recognize or cooperate with “Israel’s regime.”
On November 3, 2012, Al Akhras tweeted, quoting SJP co-founder Hatem Bazian: “‘SJP's collaborating with groups like Hillel is bringing the ‘Abbas-Netanyahu’ complex on to college campuses’ - Hatem Bazain #SJPConf.”
Hillel International is a Jewish campus organization serving college students at 850 universities worldwide.
SJP OSU
Students for Justice in Palestine at OSU (SJP OSU) was formerly known as the Committee for Justice in Palestine (CJP), until 2016.SJP OSU - Spreading Incitement 2013-2015
On September 23, 2015, SJP OSU promoted an event on Facebook titled: “#AlAqsaUnderAttack: The Treatment of Sacred Palestinian Places of Worship Under the Occupation.”The event’s Facebook description claimed that there have been “attacks of Masjid Al-Aqsa, the third-holiest site in the Islamic faith, by the Israeli Defense Forces.”
On September 13, 2015, masked Palestinian rioters barricaded themselves inside the Al Aqsa Mosque. They set off fireworks, starting a small fire, and threw stones and debris stored inside the mosque at Israeli police. The police later found pipe bombs the rioters had prepared to launch at Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount plaza.
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In October 2015, there was an upsurge in violence across Israel incited by Palestinian political and religious leaders. The wave of stabbings, known as the “Knife Intifada,” was characterized by young Palestinians throughout the country stabbing and attempting to stab Israeli civilians. The attacks were incited by Palestinian leaders propagating the libel that Israel intended to desecrate the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
On November 3, 2014, SJP OSU co-sponsored and promoted on Facebook a “Hands Off Al Aqsa!” event.
The event’s Facebook description said: “When will we stop rallying? When Palestine is FREE! Religious freedom is under attack! As humans, we cannot stand around and watch as Palestinians are robbed of their religious freedom.”
On October 30, 2014, after a terrorist attempted [00:00:13] to assassinate Rabbi Yehuda Glick, triggering a temporary closure of the the Temple Mount, SJP OSU posted to Facebook an Al-Jazeera article titled: “Shutdown of Al-Aqsa mosque a ‘declaration of war’ say Palestinian leaders.”
SJP OSU - Spreading Hatred of Israel 2014-2016
On April 2, 2016, SJP OSU promoted on Facebook an event the group hosted as part of Birzeit University’s “Right to Education” tour.The Right to Education Tour brings Birzeit University students to U.S. campuses, where they claim that Israel is obstructing the rights of Palestinians to higher education. This claim mischaracterizes the sweeps Israeli security forces have made to shut down terror cells operating on the Birzeit campus, including cells linked to Hamas.
On November 6, 2015, SJP OSU posted an article on Facebook that claimed Israel harvested organs from the bodies of killed Palestinians. The accusation was made by the chief Palestinian delegate at the United Nations, Riyad Mansour. Israel’s then-U.N. Ambassador Danny Danon wrote to the U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon demanding that he condemn the accusation.
On October 2, 2014, SJP OSU posted a graphic on Facebook that read: “#JSIL.”
The hashtag “#JSIL” means “Jewish State in the Levant” and is used as a way of comparing Israel to the Islamic State (ISIS), also known as the Islamic State in the Levant (ISIL).
SJP OSU’s Facebook post linked to an Al Jazeera social media stream post that spread an effort by Twitter users “to rebrand Israel as [Islamic State and the Levant] ISIL, renaming it ‘The Jewish State of Israel in the Levant.’”
On September 26, 2014, SJP OSU posted on Facebook a graphic featuring a series of misleading maps that presented lands once controlled by Britain, Egypt and Jordan as autonomous “Palestinian land,” purportedly stolen by Israel. SJP OSU also featured these maps as part of their mock “apartheid wall,” during Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) .
Israeli Apartheid Week (IAW) is presented as “an international series of events that seek to raise awareness of…Israel’s settler-colonial project and apartheid system over the Palestinian people” and build support for the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.
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.
Social Media and Weblinks
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jana-al-akhras-esq-7b79a290/
- Status:
- Professional
- University:
- Ohio-State
- Organizations:
- BDS,
- SJP
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- Last Modified:
- 06/23/2025
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