Mufida Asmar

Overview

Mufida Asmar has spread conspiracy theories, expressed hatred of Zionists, whitewashed terrorists and promoted incitement. She has also demonized Israel, engaged in anti-Israel activism and is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement.

As of April 2022, Asmar was listed as the president of Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the University of Rochester (UR) in 2021-2022

As of September 2021, Asmar was a member of SJP UR’s Executive Board and served as president of the Executive Board in May 2021.

As of April 2022, Asmar was listed as a Diversity Committee Member for the Biology Department at UR.

As of the same date, Asmar was studying for a bachelor’s degree in Biology at UR, slated to graduate in 2022.

As of the same date, Asmar was located in Rochester, New York. However, Asmar’s Instagram bio listed that she was from Chicago, Illinois.

As of April 2022, Asmar used the name “Fida Muhammad” on Facebook and went by “fidaaamuhammad” on Instagram, “7FidaAsmar” on Twitter and “masmar37” on Tiktok.

Spreading Conspiracy Theories

On May 25, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “They also did this in Gaza city. They put birth control in the water. Israel wants an only ethno states for white zionists. They use black Jews to fight in their armies and then deport them afterwards.”

Asmar’s tweet linked to another tweet which claimed that Israel sterilized Ethiopian immigrants.

The claim that the Israeli government forcibly sterilizes African Jewish women is based on a 2012 report, which alleged malpractice by healthcare workers who administered a temporary contraceptive to a group of Ethiopian Jewish women in the late 1990s without their proper consent. The allegations have since been adopted and actively promoted by anti-Israel advocates.

On December 3, 2020, Asmar tweeted: “Have you seen how the UK is denying the vaccine to Palestinians but providing it for Israelis?”

Under the Oslo Accords [p. 5], the Palestinian Authority (PA) is responsible for providing health services to Palestinians under its jurisdiction. In December 2020, PA officials reportedly contacted Israel’s Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) department to request the vaccine, which Israel agreed to provide.

Hatred of Zionists

On November 14, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “I can’t believe @TheRock made a movie with a zionist war criminal ewwww y’all better not watch Red Notice.”

The tweet was in reference to Israeli actress Gal Gadot who portrayed The Bishop in the 2021 film Red Notice with American actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson.

On June 25, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “Whenever I see anyone have ‘Zionist’ on their bio I’m literally so bewildered like imagine putting ‘racist in ur bio. same s**t.”

On September 22, 2020, referring to actress and musician Zendaya Coleman, Asmar tweeted: “Zendaya is still a Zionist who supports the people who occupy and terrorize my country(:.”

On March 16, 2019, Asmar tweeted: “Can all these Zionist gtfo [get the f**k out] my mentions y’all are annoying.”

Whitewashing a Terrorist

On July 15, 2019, Asmar tweeted about Shorouq Dwayyat: “They then proceeded to plant a knife on her and excusing her of trying to stab an Israeli and sentenced her to 16 years.”

On October 7, 2015, at the peak of the “Knife Intifada,” Shorouq Dwayyat stabbed one Jewish man and attempted to stab another in Jerusalem’s Old City. Prior to the attack, Dwayyat reportedly posted to her Facebook saying: “I’m going to become a shahid [martyr].” In December 2016, Dwayyat was sentenced to 16 years in prison by the Jerusalem District Court for her terror attack.

Promoting Incitement

On May 8, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “F**k Israel…#FreePalestine.”

Asmar’s tweet linked to another tweet that included a video of clashes between the Israeli police and Palestinians at Al Aqsa mosque and said: “This is what Al Aqsa looks like right now. This is the nightmare Israeli forces are subjecting Palestinians to.”

On May 7-10, 2021, violent clashes broke out between Palestinian worshippers and Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa compound, following claims that Al-Aqsa Mosque was in danger. The allegation that Jews “threaten” to destroy Al-Aqsa has been a traditional pretext for Arab attacks on Jews long before the existence of the modern Jewish state.

Demonizing Israel

On February 11, 2022, Amsar tweeted: “Repeat after me SPEAKING UP FOR PALESTINIANS AND CALLING OUT ISRAELI APARTHEID AND ETHNIC CLEANSING is not antisemitic.”

On July 8, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “How tf [the f**k] is Israel this untouchable? They literally get away with genocide, destroying peoples homes and the world doesn’t bat an eye? No media outrage? Nothing? #FreePalestine.”

On May 21, 2021, Asmar tweeted, referring to Israel Defense Forces (IDF) as “the Israeli occupation forces” that “enforce a genocide.”

“IOF” stands for Israeli Occupation Forces, a derogatory name used by anti-Israel activists to demonize Israel’s army in place of its official name, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

On May 11, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “Look at this colonizer supporting illegal settlements.”

Asmar’s tweet was a response to another tweet by U.S. Representative Brad Schneider that said: “I pray for easing of tensions and will continue to work towards seeking paths to peace and a viable two state solution.”

On May 2, 2021, Amsar tweeted: “@RepSchneider Can’t wait to vote you out of office!!No one wants a representative who support ethnic cleansing and a peaceful way of protesting.”

On April 16, 2021, Asmar tweeted, accusing Israel of Nakba. Asmar’s tweet linked to a video celebrating Israeli Independence Day.

The term “Nakba” is generally translated as “catastrophe” in Arabic, referring to the outcome of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It is a term often used to delegitimize the creation of the State of Israel by defining it as a catastrophe.

Anti-Israel Activism

On May 10, 2021, Asmar posted to Facebook a flyer for a May 12, 2021 SJP UR protest held in front of the Federal Building in Rochester, New York.

SJP UR posted the same flyer to Instagram and commented: “Stand with the Palestinians against the planned expulsions, violence and attacks against innocent civilians, murders of Palestinians all around the country and attacks on Al Aqsa mosque.”

Asmar wrote: “❤️❤️❤️🔥🔥🔥” in response to SJP UR’s Instagram post.

SJP UR posted a picture from the rally [slide 12] uploaded by Asmar.

At the rally, protesters chanted [slide 4]: “One, two, three, four – occupation no more. Five, six, seven, eight – Israel is a terror state.” One of the speakers said [slide 8] that “Israel is committing the crime of apartheid.”

Protestors also held signs that read [slide 13]: “STOP THE ETHNIC CLEANSING, STOP THE GENOCIDE,” [slide 5] “END THE OCCUPATION” and [slide 9] “END THE NAKBA.”

Supporting BDS

On July 19, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “BOYCOTTING WORKSSS.”

Asmar’s tweet linked to a tweet from Ben & Jerry’s announcing the end of ice cream sales in Jewish neighborhoods in the West Bank.

On July 19, 2021, ice cream company Ben & Jerry’s announced it would stop all product sales in “Occupied Palestinian Territory.” The BDS movement celebrated the decision, calling on the ice cream company to boycott the State of Israel in its entirety. However, company owner Unilever overrode the subsidiary’s decision after multiple US states decided to divest public funds from Unilever.

On May 10, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “BOYCOTT ISRAEL BOYCOTT ALL PRODUCTS BOYCOTT EVERYTHING THAT HAS ANY ASSOCIATION WITH THE APARTHEID AND ETHNO STATE OF ISRAEL.”

On January 22, 2021, Asmar tweeted: “Boycotting is a form of protest to the oppression and injustice Palestinians face on a daily basis @AndrewYang Don’t speak on something you have no clue about, stick to your money slogan.“

Asmar’s tweet included another tweet that linked to an article by Andrew Yang, in which he criticized the 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.