Nathan Feldman
Overview
Nathan Feldman has expressed support for violent protesters and demonized Israel, as well as American support for Israel. He has also expressed support for anti-Israel agitators and was an activist with Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP), at the University of Maryland, College Park (SJP UMD) in 2017.SJP UMD joined with the Muslim Association for Social Change (MASC) at UMD (UMD MASC) to promote BDS. UMD MASC wasknown as the UMD Muslim Political Alliance (MPA) prior to August 3, 2017.
In 2018, Feldman ran in the campaign for the Maryland Assembly, as a candidate with the Green Party, to represent District 11. Feldman withdrew in May 2018 and failed to appear on the general election ballot.
Feldman is a supporter of the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
As of July 2020, Feldman was an organizer [00:01:33] at the “Freedom to Boycott MD Coalition.”
Feldman was affiliated with the Americans for Muslims in Palestine (AMP) in 2017 and2019.
As of November 2017, Feldman reportedly graduated from UMD. As of July 2020, Feldman’s Facebook bio stated he was a Graduate Assistant at UMD.
In April, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook that he had “been admitted into both the UMBC and UMD Masters of Public Policy programs.”
As of July 2020, Feldman’s Twitter bio stated he was a Public Policy student at UMD, located in Maryland.
Supporting Violent Protesters
On March 20, 2018, Feldman posted to Facebook an article from Haaretz about the then-planned violent riots to take place on Israel’s border with Gaza and commented: “What more fitting way to mark the holiday celebrating the ancient Hebrews' return to Canaan than a mass march by the Palestinian people to do the very same?”On March 31, 2018, Feldman posted a photo of the Gaza border riots to Facebook and captioned it: “On the first day of Passover, Palestinians from Gaza came marching to the border wall demanding the right to return to their land just as the ancient Hebrews returned millennia ago.
Feldman continued: “They announced they would come nonviolently. They came nonviolently...The reality in the picture is clear as day. Israel didn't need to shoot. The IDF could have ignored the demonstrations. When will Israel's supporters stop pretending these refugees are an existential crisis to be wiped out?”
On March 30, 2018, some 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza approached Israel’s border to take part in “Land Day Protests” or the “March of Return.” The violent demonstrations were instigated by Hamas on the Israeli-Gaza border. Participants declared their intention to harm Jews across the border under the pretext of “peaceful resistance.”
March participants sent scores of kites bearing explosive devices across Israel’s border to burn Israeli crops and homes. Rioters also made numerous attempts to breach Israel’s border fence, which caused the Israeli Defense Forces to respond with live fire.
Agitators also threw Molotov cocktails, firebombs, shot firearms and threw rocks under the cover of smoke from burning tires.
Media reports confirmed [00:00:20] the March of Return protesters’ breaches and attempted breaches of Israel’s border fence, some by armed Palestinians. One Hamas leader declared [00:00:30]: “We will take down the border [with Israel] and we will tear out their hearts from their bodies.”
On April 8, 2018, Feldman posted an advertisement to Facebook for a “Gaza Solidarity Protest” at the Israel Embassy in Washington DC.
Most of the Gazans who died between March 30 and April 6, 2018, were identified as terror operatives who were killed while carrying out terrorist attacks, rioting against IDF forces or attempting to breach the border fence between Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Also on April 8, 2018, Feldman shared a photo from the protest to Facebook with the caption: “...By working together, we will end Israeli brutality in Gaza. Let's build!”
Featured in the photo were members of Neturei Karta, representatives from Code Pink and signs that said: “Free Israel from Zionist Madness,” “...there is nothing sacred about Israeli apartheid” and “ Don’t Tell Me You Want Peace!”
On May 15, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook: “I got my article into the Baltimore Sun in response to the massacres in Gaza - please read, share, and write a letter to the editor in support!” Feldman linked to an article he wrote titled: “Gaza deaths demand action.”
On May 16, 2018, a Hamas senior official, Salah al-Bardawil, stated that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during the May 14 Gaza border protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed that three of its members were killed at the same protest.
In his article, Feldman wrote: “Now is the time for citizens of conscience to stand up for the rights of those killed to ensure that their deaths will not have been in vain.”
Feldman also addressed “progressive Jews” and urged “we must fight for the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes.”
He added:“We must oppose the use of U.S. tax dollars in the gross violation of Palestinian human rights” and called on the U.S. Senator Ben Cardin of his home state of Maryland: “to withdraw the Israel Anti-Boycott Act he co-sponsored and begin a public investigation into the usage of U.S. foreign aid to Israel.”
The Israel Anti-Boycott Act (S.720/H.R. 1697) declared that U.S. policy opposed a March 24, 2016 UN Human Rights Council Resolution which called to boycott and divest from Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Feldman also alleged that Israel was guilty of “gross violations of human rights” and therefore “this foreign aid is illegal and must be withdrawn until full accountability for these actions is attained.”
“Days of Rage” have been called for by the terror group Hamas. Multiple reports stated that the 2020 “Day of Rage” was called in opposition to”annexation” and called for “mass protests.”
In the spring of 2020, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israeli sovereignty would be applied to certain areas of the West Bank. The annexation plan was canceled a day before the July 1, 2020 deadline.
Habehh has spread hatred of Jews, joked about the Holocaust, celebrated anti-Semitic violence and praised the terror group Hamas. He has also tweeted anti-black bigotry, promoted homophobia and defended terrorists.
In the interview, Habehh described [00:08:04] Days of Rage as: “a full day of protest going on around the world for the latest act of settler colonialism … this blatant act of war crimes” and said that [00:08:49] “Historically, Day of Rages [sic] always been the peoples’ in the grassroots’ answer to Israeli Aggression to the Palestinian people.”
During the interview, Feldman claimed [00:06:33] that he traveled on to Israel on a Birthright Israel trip in college and encountered “latent racism,” which inspired him to join SJP.
Birthright Israel is a heritage trip to Israel for Jewish young adults from across the world.
Feldman also said [00:12:51] about Israel: “the ethnic cleansing that have been 1948 and inherent in this occupation, we've been seeing the demolition of Palestinian homes The increased control of Palestinian daily life and constant racist incitement against Palestinian civilians by Israeli settlers in order to entrench this occupation.”
Feldman also claimed [00:25:27] Israelis who incite violence are “very often let off the hook” and minimized rock throwing
In response to a question about advocating for Palestinian rights “from a Jewish perspective,” Feldman said [00:35:57]: “as a constituent is I've been setting up meetings in the Washington DC offices of senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and the representatives from Maryland to push them to co sponsor, hr 2407.”
U.S. Representative Betty McCollum stated her bill, H.R.2407, was to end “abusive Israeli military detention practices” related to Palestinian children and that it “amends a provision of the Foreign Assistance Act...to prohibit funding for the military detention of children in any country, including Israel.”
NGO Monitor reported that the bill is “based largely on the lobbying efforts and accusations of Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-P), who has “Numerous individuals with alleged ties” to the terror organization the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).”
NGO Monitor also reported that H.R.2407 “includes several inaccurate factual claims and distortions of international law...misquotes a number of [U.S.] State Department reports.”
Finally, Feldman praised [00:41:53] anti-Israel organizations Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and IfNotNow (INN).
On February 28, 2020, Feldman tweeted:“‘dissident’ lol. I guess if you want to cut socialists and social democrats out of Zionism entirely and cement Israel as a fascist state I won't complain. Young Jews know Israel isnt our salvation.”
On December 12, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “...responding to the claims made in the picture, sentence by sentence” and continued: “‘They elected Hamas, a terrorist org, as their gov’ Israel's occupation, including of Gaza, predates 2006 and 1988. And they never relinquished control - they still control the border, the water, imports, and movement. Israel still bombs Gaza at will. It's not Hamas.”
On October 30, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “‘military aid used by the Israeli government to commit human rights violations’ and ‘humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza to live which by definition cannot be abused by Hamas’ aren't the same thing. Y'all don't care about Gaza. Israel blocks food+medicine, and you're silent.”
On September 11, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Israel's a very racist place, and it's not that hard to see why an ambassador would roll up on the Hill to pick on America's ‘radical’ Black president. Also they hated the Iran deal, yet another reason to politicize their diplomacy. Israel complains over really banal shit.”
On August 22, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “And so, Israel's so-called ‘Jewish nature’ (it is anything but, the country is a modern-day golden calf) does infringe on Palestinians. Through the settlements, segregated roads, segregated housing, unequal immigration, checkpoints...Don't cover for discrimination.”
On May 18, 2019, Feldman posted a video from AJ+ on Facebook and commented: “Any food marketed as ‘Israeli’ is fraudulently advertised if it has existed for at least 70 years. Because then its origins predate Israel. Newsflash: That's almost all ‘Israeli’ food.”
Feldman authored an opinion piece published on May 2, 2017, in the UMD student newspaper, titled: “Israel does not deserve to be celebrated.”
In the article, Feldman claimed that “Israel holds the entire population of Gaza captive” and accused Israel of dropping “white phosphorus, a gaseous chemical weapon that can burn its victims to death, over Gazan cities and civilian centers.” The charge against Israel of using chemical weapons has been debunked on multiple occasions.
Feldman’s article went on to claim that “the Jewish community worldwide has been taken hostage by the brutal Israeli war machine that commits atrocities in our name.”
Feldman wrote an article published on the SJP UMD blog on March 24, 2017, titled: “Why is Israel scared of accusations of apartheid?” The article repeatedly accused Israel of “apartheid,” in order to promote SJP UMD’s BDS campaign.
Feldman’s article also highlighted Richard Falk and an anti-Israel UN report. In March 2017, a Middle East UN office comprised of 18 Arab states produced a report claiming that Israel established an “apartheid regime.” Richard Falk, a professor with a history of anti-Israel biases, co-authored the report.
In 2007, Falk described Israel as creating a “Palestinian Holocaust” and rhetorically posed the question: “Is it an irresponsible overstatement to associate the treatment of Palestinians with this criminalized Nazi record of collective atrocity? I think not.”
In 2012, Falk was expelled from Human Rights Watch for spreading anti-Semitic propaganda. In 2013, Falk blamed “the American domination project and Tel Aviv” for the terror attack bombing of the 2013 Boston Marathon.
Soon after the report’s release, UN Secretary General Antonió Guterres ordered it withdrawn. His spokesman said the report was published without prior consultations with Guterres’ office and it did not reflect the UN secretariat’s views.
Feldman’s article also linked to a story appearing on the anti-Israel website Electronic Intifada (EI), about the retracted U.N. report anti-Israel activist Ali Abunimah. Abunimeh’s story accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and racism.
On February 24, 2020, Feldman responded to a tweet that said attendees at the the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) annual policy conference cheered for Palestinian rights and wrote: “Bunch of patronizing bigots who support only vague notions of Palestinian rights but who will always oppose anyone pressuring Israel to recognize them? But they wanna feel good about their cynical selves? sounds right.”
On September 15, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Reducing the Jewish political identity to support for Israel and lumping them together is a very common anti-semitic tactic used by the far right of your party, @GovLarryHogan. Israel illegally occupies Palestinian land. Many Jews do not support that.”
On August 17, 2019, Feldman tweeted:“The bipartisan support for Israel's occupation and ongoing suffocation of Palestinian life since 1948 has always been in contravention of Democratic values. The aid we send for this purpose is unacceptable.”
On May 19, 2018 Feldman posted on Facebook: “I love getting hate mail from folks who call me one-sided then proceed to quote ‘If Palestinians laid down their arms there would be peace, if the Israelis laid down their arms they would be dead.’ These Zionist nincompoops make the job for activists like me very easy.”
On April 24, 2018 Feldman shared an article on Facebook about pro-Israel students who were having difficulty defending Israel on hostile college campuses.
Feldman commented: “When actions taken by a nation-state and its most ardent supporters make it ‘hard to defend’, perhaps it's time to stop defending it? The undersigned Pro-Israel groups are engaged in at least one of the following two actions:
1) Defending Israel without regard to its actions, because they stand by it despite constantly being forced to condemn its vicious tendencies
2) Condemning Israel's more vicious tendencies in public despite not caring so that they can seem more humane without coming under fire for defending the country.”
On April 18, 2018, Feldman posted a photo to Facebook of Jewish philanthropist Michael Steinhardt, including a quote attributed to Steinhardt against BDS and commented: “If Caligula could appoint his horse as a consul surely Taglit-Birthright Israel could find a less hairy a** to ride on?”
Steinhardt co-founded Birthright Israel and was on its honorary board as of April 2018.
On February 1, 2020, Feldman tweeted: “Well... Hillary has been a longtime supporter of Israel's occupation of Palestine. Where Rashida [Tlaib] was banned from going. Where her family lives. Because she was too strong and wanted to speak her mind and do her job.”
Rashida Tlaib was elected to the U.S. Congress in November 2018. She has advocated for a one-state solution, endorsed the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement and called for reduced foreign aid to Israel.
AMP’s annual Palestine Advocacy Day (PAD) has been held in Washington, D.C., since 2015. Activists, including multiple former SJP leaders, are trained by AMP officials and also promote the BDS movement in meetings with Members of Congress, their staff and other government officials.
On September 18, 2017, Feldman was featured in a group photo posted to Facebook by UMD SJP. The caption read: “We built a mock Israeli Apartheid wall as a visual representation of the human rights violations Palestinians are forced to undergo on a daily basis.”
On November 7, 2017, Feldman wrote an article for the UMD campus newspaper the Diamondback, titled: “How Students for Justice in Palestine helped form my Jewish identity.”
Feldman wrote that “As a Jewish alumnus, I feel that my work with SJP was crucial in forming my identity.” He reiterated his stance “as a Jew and active anti-Zionist.”
On January 21, 2018, Feldman posted a photo of himself to Facebook, surrounded by anti-Israel posters and wrote: “Join us tomorrow to protest one of the most hardline pro-Israel Democrats by RSVP-ing here: https://m.facebook.com/events/175773583023697.”
Feldman’s post promoted an event co-sponsored by two JVP chapters, to protest David Trone, a Democratic nominee for U.S. Congress, who organizers criticized for “his completely one-sided support for Israel's actions.”
On December 21, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook: “Just got out of a meeting with Representative Sarbanes (D-MD03). He says he ‘doesn't think the Israel Anti Boycott Act should make it into the budget’. But that's not a guarantee, so much as a note of encouragement. He happens to be a cosponsor of the bill, so we need to keep pushing. Call the offices of Ben Cardin, Nancy Pelosi, Jamie Raskin (he is a member of incoming Dem leadership), and Chris Van Hollen to voice your opposition to the bill TODAY.”
On April 13, 2019, Feldman was interviewed by Turkish international news channel. TRT World, as a “student activist” and asked to comment on the then-upcoming Israeli election.
Feldman [00:05:13] spoke on behalf of the American Jewish community and praised the “resurgence” of “left- wing and progressive Jewish groups,” specifically mentioning [00:05:23] the anti-Israel organizations IfNotNow for leading protests against the “massacres at the Gaza border” and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) for being a “pro-BDS organization.”
Feldman said [00:05:52] he thinks American Jews “really are openly moving away from the state of Israel.”
On May 6, 2019, Feldman responded to a tweet by Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer which said: “Hamas must immediately stop launching rockets into Israel” and thatthe US “stands strongly in support of our ally Israel and its right to protect its citizens.”
Feldman tweeted: “I went to your office recently with American Muslims for Palestine. They've been trying to meet with you. Your office blew us off and lied that we didn't get in touch in time. Now you support Israel's blockade of Gaza?”
On May 17, 2019 Feldman posted on Facebook: “Anyone down to visit Congress May 24 to talk Palestinian rights? We're doing a thing, DM me”
On May 23, 2019, Feldman posted about the Congressional visit on Facebook and wrote: “Current itinerary for tomorrow, meetings on the hill for Palestinian rights:
Cummings' office, 10:15am Sen CVH: 11:00am Raskin: 1:30pm Appt. with Brown looks promising.”
On March 21, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook about participating with AMP’s lobbying day in Washington, D.C.: “With Nathan Feldman for House of Delegates MD-11.”
Feldman’s post featured a photo of himself posing with three other activists, outside the U.S. Capitol building and said that he: “attended the American Muslims for Palestine lobbying day in Washington DC... to advocate FOR Betty McCollum's bill opposing US funding for Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children and AGAINST Senator Ben Cardin's unconstitutional Israel Anti-Boycott Act!”
On March 7, 2017, Feldman was listed on Facebook as a co-host for an SJP UMD event promoting the group’s BDS campaign.
On January 22, 2019, Feldman co-wrote an article with a representative from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and one from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which listed different challenges to states’ anti-BDS laws.
On April 25, 2019 Feldman posted to Facebook a recap of the debate over the UMD BDS bill, which failed to pass 16-64.
Feldman wrote: “This is just like the South Africa divestment movement: A contingent of white, middle class students who endlessly make excuses for an increasingly fascistic ethno-state slowly become isolated as students who value justice and equality for all see their numbers explode...Standing on the right side of history is a choice Jewish Americans such as myself make every day. Fascists, join us on the right side of history or get rolled over. #DivestUMD.”
On December 13, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “‘It's time America leverages its power’ That I agree with. We need to stop giving aid to Israel while it literally keeps 2 million Gazans starving to death. Garnering the political will to do so req's politicians like you to stop repeating the same canned talking points.”
On December 30, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Humanitarian aid to Gaza has done little to prevent the area from becoming a full-blown catastrophe. I know this because I've had direct contact for years with people who work with partners on the ground. It won't stop until aid to Israel is suspended and the siege lifted.”
On August 3, 2017, UMD MPA rebranded itself as UMD MASC.
Israel Fest is an annual, non-political event held at UMD to celebrate Israeli culture, organized by the Jewish Student Union (Maryland JSU) and other pro-Israel student groups at UMD.
UMD MASC (formerly UMD MPA) posted a letter in their Facebook post, co-authored with SJP UMD, that called on the entire campus community to boycott the Israel Fest celebration.
The Facebook post claimed: "there was a great deal of frustration among students and faculty alike that this event continues to take place on our campus...we find this not only unnecessary, but insulting..."
The Facebook post continued: “But with the annual celebrations of Israel on our campus, we are directly excusing the atrocities it has committed...We are encouraging the celebration of an apartheid state..”
During the week preceding the festival celebrating Israeli culture, SJP members reportedly chalked "Boycott Israel Fest" all over the campus.
On May 2, 2017, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) and SJP UMD co-hosted a boycott protest of Israel Fest and a teach-in, which featured a “mock apartheid” wall.
Israel’s security barrier, built as a deterrent to Palestinian terror attacks, is 97% low chain-link barrier. The concrete portions of the fence were built in response to Palestinian sniper attacks.
Publisher McGraw-Hill Education recalled copies of a textbook that contained the fraudulent maps in February 2016 and U.S. news network MSNBC apologized for using similar maps that they later admitted were “not factually accurate,” in October 2015.
On February 12, 2017, the UMD student newspaper, DBK News, reported that SJP UMD was “calling on University of Maryland administration to boycott companies and institutions that promote the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.”
DBK news quoted SJP UMD’s president, Miranda Mlilo, as saying: “SJP doesn't know what organizations this university may be invested in, but that they may file a public records request to find out."
On November 16, 2017, DBK news reported that the UMD SGA Student Affairs Committee returned a negative report on the BDS resolution a day earlier, by a vote of 1-21, with three abstentions.
DBK news further reported that SGA legislators debated on whether to overturn the Student Affairs Committee decision to reject the BDS resolution. The legislators decided not to overturn the negative report in a 23-13 vote, with one abstention.
Taher Herzallah, is the Associate Director of Outreach & Grassroots Organizing of American Muslims for Palestine (AMP). Herzallah has expressed support for violence against Israeli Jews, spread an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory and posted pro-terrorist imagery to social media.
Kareem El-Hosseiny has served as the Government Relations Coordinator at AMP since August 2016. He participated in a pro-Hamas aid convoy to Gaza, has promoted anti-Semitism, defended violent agitators and demonized American Jewish organizations, Israel [00:07:40] and Zionism.
The April 18, 2017 event was originally billed as “A Conversation with Yousef Munayyer.” From 2015 to 2019, Yousef Munayyer was the Executive Director of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), formerly known as the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation (ETO).
However, on April 16, 2017, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) wrote on the event’s Facebook page that Munayyer could not attend and that “in his place we will have Taher Herzallah from American Muslims for Palestine. We're so happy to be hosting him!”
SJP UMD began [00:00:45] its protest with a rally outside McKeldin Library, where leading SJP UMD activist Mohammad Sajjad Soltanmohammadi, a supporter of both Hezbollah and Hamas, led [00:01:32] the chant: “[Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu what do you say, how many kids did you kill today?”
Shane James, SJP UMD co-president led [00:06:13] the chant: “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.”
The chant “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state. It is a chant calling to dismantle the State of Israel.
Many demonstrators continued to occupy the space, reportedly in defiance of university rules and engaged [00:17:07] in heated confrontations with campus police.
The petition alleged that “Innocent children are forced from their homes to make room for Israeli settlers” and condemned Israeli checkpoints, which were built to stop suicide bombings and other terror attacks.
Israeli checkpoints were builtto protect Israel's civilian population against terror attacks, such as suicide bombings.
The petition also claimed: “White phosphorous, a chemical weapon which kills indiscriminately by burning its victims from the inside, has even been used on civilians in Gaza white phosphorous to kill Palestinian civilians in Gaza.” The charge against Israel of using chemical weapons has been made and debunked on multiple occasions.
October 2015 saw a wave of stabbings, known as the “Knife Intifada,” where young Palestinians throughout Israel were stabbing and attempting to stab Israeli civilians. The upsurge in violence across Israel was incited by Palestinian political and religious leaders. The attacks were sparked and fueled by Palestinian leaders propagating the libel that Israel intended to desecrate the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
The SJP UMD event’s Facebook description read: “In light of Israel's escalation of violence against the Palestinians, SJP is holding an emergency forum.”
The SJP UMD event’s Facebook description went on to say: “...dozens were killed by the Israeli police, soldiers and settler lynch mobs. The Israeli military has also been occupying Al-Aqsa . Come and take action in support of the Palestinian people!”
SJP UMD’s post also featured a graphic with the phrases ‘Hands Off Al-Aqsa’ and ‘Boycott Israel Now!’”
Masked Palestinian rioters barricaded themselves inside the Al Aqsa Mosque on September 13, 2015. The rioters set off fireworks, starting a small fire and threw stones and debris stored inside at Israeli police. Pipe bombs were later found by Israeli police. The rioters had prepared the pipe bombs to launch at Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount plaza.
On November 16, 2015, SJP UMD hosted Washington, D.C.-based Reverend Graylan Hagler, as part of "Unity Week," organized by the Muslim Student Association (MSA).
Hagler has reportedly said the Zionist lobby controls American leaders and the entire international community. Hagler has also reportedly downplayed the horror of the Holocaust, saying: “I’m not denying there was a Holocaust...but it was a Holocaust.”
Hagler has also romanticized Palestinian violence against Israel and compared Palestinian terrorism to anti-police demonstrations in Black American neighborhoods.
Nakba is an Arabic term for “catastrophe” and refers to the outcome of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It is a term often used to delegitimize the creation of the State of Israel.
Hamideh is the co-founder of Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition (Al Awda), which is known for spreading anti-Semitism and hatred of Israel, denying Jewish history and supporting terrorism.
The event’s Facebook description read: “This day symbolizes the exodus of the Palestinian people from their land as Zionist militias ethnically cleansed their communities and founded the State of Israel, creating what Badil and the Institute for Middle East Understanding calls the largest and longest-standing refugee populations in the world.”
On April 29, 2015, SJP UMD posted a group photo on Facebook of SJP activists with Hamideh following the event.
Featured in the photo were members of Neturei Karta, representatives from Code Pink and signs that said: “Free Israel from Zionist Madness,” “...there is nothing sacred about Israeli apartheid” and “ Don’t Tell Me You Want Peace!”
Neturei Karta is an anti-Israel Jewish fringe group whose leader, Yisroel Dovid Weiss, was excommunicated from many Ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups for participating in a 2006 Holocaust denial conference in Iran. The group opposes Zionism on religious grounds and has called to dismantle Israel.
On May 15, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook: “I got my article into the Baltimore Sun in response to the massacres in Gaza - please read, share, and write a letter to the editor in support!” Feldman linked to an article he wrote titled: “Gaza deaths demand action.”
On May 16, 2018, a Hamas senior official, Salah al-Bardawil, stated that 50 out of 62 protesters killed during the May 14 Gaza border protest were Hamas operatives. Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) also claimed that three of its members were killed at the same protest.
In his article, Feldman wrote: “Now is the time for citizens of conscience to stand up for the rights of those killed to ensure that their deaths will not have been in vain.”
Feldman also addressed “progressive Jews” and urged “we must fight for the right of Palestinian refugees to return to their homes.”
The “right of return” is a Palestinian demand discredited as a means to eliminate Israel. International law mandates no absolute right of return and UN Resolution 194, which defined principles for “refugees wishing to return to their homes,” was unanimously rejected by Arab nations following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
He added:“We must oppose the use of U.S. tax dollars in the gross violation of Palestinian human rights” and called on the U.S. Senator Ben Cardin of his home state of Maryland: “to withdraw the Israel Anti-Boycott Act he co-sponsored and begin a public investigation into the usage of U.S. foreign aid to Israel.”
The Israel Anti-Boycott Act (S.720/H.R. 1697) declared that U.S. policy opposed a March 24, 2016 UN Human Rights Council Resolution which called to boycott and divest from Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
Feldman also alleged that Israel was guilty of “gross violations of human rights” and therefore “this foreign aid is illegal and must be withdrawn until full accountability for these actions is attained.”
Demonizing Israel
On July 1, 2020, Feldman participated, alongside Mohamed Habehh, who was then National Development Coordinator of AMP,in a live video interview on Facebook with Justice for All, about a “Palestinian Day of Rage.”“Days of Rage” have been called for by the terror group Hamas. Multiple reports stated that the 2020 “Day of Rage” was called in opposition to”annexation” and called for “mass protests.”
In the spring of 2020, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that Israeli sovereignty would be applied to certain areas of the West Bank. The annexation plan was canceled a day before the July 1, 2020 deadline.
Habehh has spread hatred of Jews, joked about the Holocaust, celebrated anti-Semitic violence and praised the terror group Hamas. He has also tweeted anti-black bigotry, promoted homophobia and defended terrorists.
In the interview, Habehh described [00:08:04] Days of Rage as: “a full day of protest going on around the world for the latest act of settler colonialism … this blatant act of war crimes” and said that [00:08:49] “Historically, Day of Rages [sic] always been the peoples’ in the grassroots’ answer to Israeli Aggression to the Palestinian people.”
During the interview, Feldman claimed [00:06:33] that he traveled on to Israel on a Birthright Israel trip in college and encountered “latent racism,” which inspired him to join SJP.
Birthright Israel is a heritage trip to Israel for Jewish young adults from across the world.
Feldman also said [00:12:51] about Israel: “the ethnic cleansing that have been 1948 and inherent in this occupation, we've been seeing the demolition of Palestinian homes The increased control of Palestinian daily life and constant racist incitement against Palestinian civilians by Israeli settlers in order to entrench this occupation.”
Feldman also claimed [00:25:27] Israelis who incite violence are “very often let off the hook” and minimized rock throwing
Although romanticized as a form of “popular resistance,” rock throwing remains a deadly form of violence.
In response to a question about advocating for Palestinian rights “from a Jewish perspective,” Feldman said [00:35:57]: “as a constituent is I've been setting up meetings in the Washington DC offices of senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and the representatives from Maryland to push them to co sponsor, hr 2407.”
U.S. Representative Betty McCollum stated her bill, H.R.2407, was to end “abusive Israeli military detention practices” related to Palestinian children and that it “amends a provision of the Foreign Assistance Act...to prohibit funding for the military detention of children in any country, including Israel.”
NGO Monitor reported that the bill is “based largely on the lobbying efforts and accusations of Defense for Children International-Palestine (DCI-P), who has “Numerous individuals with alleged ties” to the terror organization the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).”
NGO Monitor also reported that H.R.2407 “includes several inaccurate factual claims and distortions of international law...misquotes a number of [U.S.] State Department reports.”
Finally, Feldman praised [00:41:53] anti-Israel organizations Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) and IfNotNow (INN).
On February 28, 2020, Feldman tweeted:“‘dissident’ lol. I guess if you want to cut socialists and social democrats out of Zionism entirely and cement Israel as a fascist state I won't complain. Young Jews know Israel isnt our salvation.”
On December 12, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “...responding to the claims made in the picture, sentence by sentence” and continued: “‘They elected Hamas, a terrorist org, as their gov’ Israel's occupation, including of Gaza, predates 2006 and 1988. And they never relinquished control - they still control the border, the water, imports, and movement. Israel still bombs Gaza at will. It's not Hamas.”
On October 30, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “‘military aid used by the Israeli government to commit human rights violations’ and ‘humanitarian aid for the people of Gaza to live which by definition cannot be abused by Hamas’ aren't the same thing. Y'all don't care about Gaza. Israel blocks food+medicine, and you're silent.”
On September 11, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Israel's a very racist place, and it's not that hard to see why an ambassador would roll up on the Hill to pick on America's ‘radical’ Black president. Also they hated the Iran deal, yet another reason to politicize their diplomacy. Israel complains over really banal shit.”
On August 22, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “And so, Israel's so-called ‘Jewish nature’ (it is anything but, the country is a modern-day golden calf) does infringe on Palestinians. Through the settlements, segregated roads, segregated housing, unequal immigration, checkpoints...Don't cover for discrimination.”
On May 18, 2019, Feldman posted a video from AJ+ on Facebook and commented: “Any food marketed as ‘Israeli’ is fraudulently advertised if it has existed for at least 70 years. Because then its origins predate Israel. Newsflash: That's almost all ‘Israeli’ food.”
Feldman authored an opinion piece published on May 2, 2017, in the UMD student newspaper, titled: “Israel does not deserve to be celebrated.”
In the article, Feldman claimed that “Israel holds the entire population of Gaza captive” and accused Israel of dropping “white phosphorus, a gaseous chemical weapon that can burn its victims to death, over Gazan cities and civilian centers.” The charge against Israel of using chemical weapons has been debunked on multiple occasions.
Feldman’s article went on to claim that “the Jewish community worldwide has been taken hostage by the brutal Israeli war machine that commits atrocities in our name.”
Feldman wrote an article published on the SJP UMD blog on March 24, 2017, titled: “Why is Israel scared of accusations of apartheid?” The article repeatedly accused Israel of “apartheid,” in order to promote SJP UMD’s BDS campaign.
Feldman’s article also highlighted Richard Falk and an anti-Israel UN report. In March 2017, a Middle East UN office comprised of 18 Arab states produced a report claiming that Israel established an “apartheid regime.” Richard Falk, a professor with a history of anti-Israel biases, co-authored the report.
In 2007, Falk described Israel as creating a “Palestinian Holocaust” and rhetorically posed the question: “Is it an irresponsible overstatement to associate the treatment of Palestinians with this criminalized Nazi record of collective atrocity? I think not.”
In 2012, Falk was expelled from Human Rights Watch for spreading anti-Semitic propaganda. In 2013, Falk blamed “the American domination project and Tel Aviv” for the terror attack bombing of the 2013 Boston Marathon.
Soon after the report’s release, UN Secretary General Antonió Guterres ordered it withdrawn. His spokesman said the report was published without prior consultations with Guterres’ office and it did not reflect the UN secretariat’s views.
Feldman’s article also linked to a story appearing on the anti-Israel website Electronic Intifada (EI), about the retracted U.N. report anti-Israel activist Ali Abunimah. Abunimeh’s story accused Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and racism.
Demonizing Support for Israel
On April 17, 2020, Feldman tweeted: “lmao Israel is more important to trump than america but don't tell @LeaderHoyer , he'll write a resolution condemning you for pointing it out (trump warned israel in november about covid).”On February 24, 2020, Feldman responded to a tweet that said attendees at the the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) annual policy conference cheered for Palestinian rights and wrote: “Bunch of patronizing bigots who support only vague notions of Palestinian rights but who will always oppose anyone pressuring Israel to recognize them? But they wanna feel good about their cynical selves? sounds right.”
On September 15, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Reducing the Jewish political identity to support for Israel and lumping them together is a very common anti-semitic tactic used by the far right of your party, @GovLarryHogan. Israel illegally occupies Palestinian land. Many Jews do not support that.”
On August 17, 2019, Feldman tweeted:“The bipartisan support for Israel's occupation and ongoing suffocation of Palestinian life since 1948 has always been in contravention of Democratic values. The aid we send for this purpose is unacceptable.”
On May 19, 2018 Feldman posted on Facebook: “I love getting hate mail from folks who call me one-sided then proceed to quote ‘If Palestinians laid down their arms there would be peace, if the Israelis laid down their arms they would be dead.’ These Zionist nincompoops make the job for activists like me very easy.”
On April 24, 2018 Feldman shared an article on Facebook about pro-Israel students who were having difficulty defending Israel on hostile college campuses.
Feldman commented: “When actions taken by a nation-state and its most ardent supporters make it ‘hard to defend’, perhaps it's time to stop defending it? The undersigned Pro-Israel groups are engaged in at least one of the following two actions:
1) Defending Israel without regard to its actions, because they stand by it despite constantly being forced to condemn its vicious tendencies
2) Condemning Israel's more vicious tendencies in public despite not caring so that they can seem more humane without coming under fire for defending the country.”
On April 18, 2018, Feldman posted a photo to Facebook of Jewish philanthropist Michael Steinhardt, including a quote attributed to Steinhardt against BDS and commented: “If Caligula could appoint his horse as a consul surely Taglit-Birthright Israel could find a less hairy a** to ride on?”
Steinhardt co-founded Birthright Israel and was on its honorary board as of April 2018.
Supporting Anti-Israel Agitators
On April 16, 2020, Feldman posted a blog post from Steven Salaita to Facebook and commented: “Steve Salaita always has indispensable takes that should leave everyone uncomfortable (and that's why they're so necessary).”In 2014, The University of Illinois withdrew an offer of employment to Steven Salaita after becoming aware of his anti-Semitic tweets. One tweet, posted shortly after Hamas kidnapped three teenage Israeli high school students, read: “You may be too refined to say it, but I’m not: I wish all the f**king West Bank settlers would go missing.”
On February 1, 2020, Feldman tweeted: “Well... Hillary has been a longtime supporter of Israel's occupation of Palestine. Where Rashida [Tlaib] was banned from going. Where her family lives. Because she was too strong and wanted to speak her mind and do her job.”
Rashida Tlaib was elected to the U.S. Congress in November 2018. She has advocated for a one-state solution, endorsed the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement and called for reduced foreign aid to Israel.
On August 15, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Rep. Trone, you're a member of Congress with a full-fledged business in Israel. Your colleagues were just barred from going. Will you show solidarity with fellow Democrats @Ilhan and @RepRashida? Or will you keep profiting off this continued disparity? #mdpolitics.”
In August 2019, U.S. Representatives Tlaib and Ilhan Omar were denied visas to enter Israel due to their support of the Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment (BDS) movement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then offered that Tlaib could enter to visit her elderly grandmother on humanitarian grounds, an offer Tlaib rejected.
On July 18, 2019, Feldman posted to Facebook: “Ilhan Omar just introduced a resolution to reaffirm the stance that Congress believes boycotts are valued free expression and urging Congress, States, and civil rights leaders from all communities to endeavor to preserve the freedom of advocacy for all by opposing anti-boycott resolutions and legislation.”
On June 11, 2019, Feldman posted an article on Facebook about Rep. Omar joining the newly formed “black-Jewish congressional Caucus” and wrote: “How come everyone's trying to ‘teach’ Ilhan Omar about ‘sensitivity’ when they're recruiting Congresspeople like Lee Zeldin - who has accused her of trying to ‘poison’ the caucus - as a founding member without question? Who's the real problem here????”
Ilhan Omar was elected to the U.S. Congress in 2018. In February 2019, top Congressional leaders denounced Omar for tweeting anti-Semitic remarks. She has also demonized Israel and endorsed BDS, including introducing a pro-BDS resolution in the U.S. Congress.
In July 2019, Omar introduced and Tlaib was an original co-sponsor of H.Res. 496, referred to as a “pro-BDS” resolution, which Omar described as “an opportunity for us to explain why it is we support...the BDS movement.”
On August 13, 2018, Feldman shared a screenshot to Facebook of a post from then-British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and wrote: “Jeremy Corbyn, best politician of my lifetime right here.”
Corbyn’s Facebook post admonished Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after Netanyahu tweeted that called to criticize Corbyn for laying a wreath at the grave of a terrorist who carried out the Munich Olympic Massacre and comparing Israel to the Nazi regime.
On July 29, 2018, Feldman posted a video from AJ+ about Ahed Tamimi’s release from prison and commented: “There are the sellouts of this generation already working for Senator Ben Cardin, Senator Chuck Schumer, and their ilk; getting ready to sell us, our parents, and our children out to their highest donors. Then we have Ahed Tamimi.”
On July 27, 2018, Feldman posted an article from Haaretz about Tamimi’s release and commented: “All locking her up did was make her voice even stronger:”
In August 2019, U.S. Representatives Tlaib and Ilhan Omar were denied visas to enter Israel due to their support of the Boycott, Sanctions and Divestment (BDS) movement. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu then offered that Tlaib could enter to visit her elderly grandmother on humanitarian grounds, an offer Tlaib rejected.
On July 18, 2019, Feldman posted to Facebook: “Ilhan Omar just introduced a resolution to reaffirm the stance that Congress believes boycotts are valued free expression and urging Congress, States, and civil rights leaders from all communities to endeavor to preserve the freedom of advocacy for all by opposing anti-boycott resolutions and legislation.”
On June 11, 2019, Feldman posted an article on Facebook about Rep. Omar joining the newly formed “black-Jewish congressional Caucus” and wrote: “How come everyone's trying to ‘teach’ Ilhan Omar about ‘sensitivity’ when they're recruiting Congresspeople like Lee Zeldin - who has accused her of trying to ‘poison’ the caucus - as a founding member without question? Who's the real problem here????”
Ilhan Omar was elected to the U.S. Congress in 2018. In February 2019, top Congressional leaders denounced Omar for tweeting anti-Semitic remarks. She has also demonized Israel and endorsed BDS, including introducing a pro-BDS resolution in the U.S. Congress.
In July 2019, Omar introduced and Tlaib was an original co-sponsor of H.Res. 496, referred to as a “pro-BDS” resolution, which Omar described as “an opportunity for us to explain why it is we support...the BDS movement.”
On August 13, 2018, Feldman shared a screenshot to Facebook of a post from then-British Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn and wrote: “Jeremy Corbyn, best politician of my lifetime right here.”
Corbyn’s Facebook post admonished Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after Netanyahu tweeted that called to criticize Corbyn for laying a wreath at the grave of a terrorist who carried out the Munich Olympic Massacre and comparing Israel to the Nazi regime.
Approximately 50 members of Jeremy Corbyn’s party were quietly suspended from the party due to their anti-Semitic comments exposed on social media.
In 2012 Corbyn invited Sheikh Raed Salah, leader of the extreme wing of the Islamic Movement in Israel, to Parliament and described Salah as "a very honored citizen."
Salah's record included endorsingthe conspiracy theory that was started by Syria’s government-owned newspaper, Al Thawra, about Jews being warned not to come to work at the Twin Towers on September 11. In a 2007 sermon, Salah also repeated the medieval European blood libel that Jews use the blood of gentile children to make matzah, for Passover.
In another incident, Corbyn stated he looked forward to hosting "our friends from Hezbollah" at an event at Parliament, and described that group and Hamas as being “dedicated toward bringing long-term peace in the entire region.”
Although he eventually expressed regret for those statements — during an investigation on anti-Semitism in his party in July of 2016 — Corbyn went on to back-handedly compare Israel’s government to ISIS.
In October 2020, Corbyn was suspended from the Labour Party after he downplayed a report that found the party “did not do enough to prevent anti-Semitism and, at worst, could be seen to accept it".
On July 29, 2018, Feldman posted a video from AJ+ about Ahed Tamimi’s release from prison and commented: “There are the sellouts of this generation already working for Senator Ben Cardin, Senator Chuck Schumer, and their ilk; getting ready to sell us, our parents, and our children out to their highest donors. Then we have Ahed Tamimi.”
Ahed Tamimi has a long history of physically attacking Israeli soldiers. Tamimi is the daughter of Bassem Tamimi, who is known for exploiting young children as political props in staged confrontations with Israeli soldiers.
On July 27, 2018, Feldman posted an article from Haaretz about Tamimi’s release and commented: “All locking her up did was make her voice even stronger:”
Anti-Israel Activism
On May 8, 2017, Feldman posed for a Facebook group photo at the third annual AMP Palestine Advocacy Day (PAD) & Training, held from April 29-May 1, 2017 in Washington, D.C.AMP’s annual Palestine Advocacy Day (PAD) has been held in Washington, D.C., since 2015. Activists, including multiple former SJP leaders, are trained by AMP officials and also promote the BDS movement in meetings with Members of Congress, their staff and other government officials.
On September 18, 2017, Feldman was featured in a group photo posted to Facebook by UMD SJP. The caption read: “We built a mock Israeli Apartheid wall as a visual representation of the human rights violations Palestinians are forced to undergo on a daily basis.”
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 November 7, 2017, Feldman wrote an article for the UMD campus newspaper the Diamondback, titled: “How Students for Justice in Palestine helped form my Jewish identity.”
Feldman wrote that “As a Jewish alumnus, I feel that my work with SJP was crucial in forming my identity.” He reiterated his stance “as a Jew and active anti-Zionist.”
On January 21, 2018, Feldman posted a photo of himself to Facebook, surrounded by anti-Israel posters and wrote: “Join us tomorrow to protest one of the most hardline pro-Israel Democrats by RSVP-ing here: https://m.facebook.com/events/175773583023697.”
Feldman’s post promoted an event co-sponsored by two JVP chapters, to protest David Trone, a Democratic nominee for U.S. Congress, who organizers criticized for “his completely one-sided support for Israel's actions.”
On December 21, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook: “Just got out of a meeting with Representative Sarbanes (D-MD03). He says he ‘doesn't think the Israel Anti Boycott Act should make it into the budget’. But that's not a guarantee, so much as a note of encouragement. He happens to be a cosponsor of the bill, so we need to keep pushing. Call the offices of Ben Cardin, Nancy Pelosi, Jamie Raskin (he is a member of incoming Dem leadership), and Chris Van Hollen to voice your opposition to the bill TODAY.”
On April 13, 2019, Feldman was interviewed by Turkish international news channel. TRT World, as a “student activist” and asked to comment on the then-upcoming Israeli election.
Feldman [00:05:13] spoke on behalf of the American Jewish community and praised the “resurgence” of “left- wing and progressive Jewish groups,” specifically mentioning [00:05:23] the anti-Israel organizations IfNotNow for leading protests against the “massacres at the Gaza border” and Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP) for being a “pro-BDS organization.”
Feldman said [00:05:52] he thinks American Jews “really are openly moving away from the state of Israel.”
On May 6, 2019, Feldman responded to a tweet by Maryland Congressman Steny Hoyer which said: “Hamas must immediately stop launching rockets into Israel” and thatthe US “stands strongly in support of our ally Israel and its right to protect its citizens.”
Feldman tweeted: “I went to your office recently with American Muslims for Palestine. They've been trying to meet with you. Your office blew us off and lied that we didn't get in touch in time. Now you support Israel's blockade of Gaza?”
On May 17, 2019 Feldman posted on Facebook: “Anyone down to visit Congress May 24 to talk Palestinian rights? We're doing a thing, DM me”
On May 23, 2019, Feldman posted about the Congressional visit on Facebook and wrote: “Current itinerary for tomorrow, meetings on the hill for Palestinian rights:
Cummings' office, 10:15am Sen CVH: 11:00am Raskin: 1:30pm Appt. with Brown looks promising.”
Political Activism
On March 15, 2018, the Public Interest Podcast posted on their website that Feldman was one of 153 candidates who had “submitted completed candidate endorsement questionnaires.”On March 21, 2018, Feldman posted on Facebook about participating with AMP’s lobbying day in Washington, D.C.: “With Nathan Feldman for House of Delegates MD-11.”
Feldman’s post featured a photo of himself posing with three other activists, outside the U.S. Capitol building and said that he: “attended the American Muslims for Palestine lobbying day in Washington DC... to advocate FOR Betty McCollum's bill opposing US funding for Israeli Military Detention of Palestinian Children and AGAINST Senator Ben Cardin's unconstitutional Israel Anti-Boycott Act!”
Supporting BDS
On February 26, 2017, Feldman signed a petition in support of BDS at UMD. Feldman commented: “As a Jew, it pains me to see Israeli apartheid maintained in my name. As an American, it pains me to see us fund the very land theft that our country committed upon our own indigenous people. As a human, I cannot stand by as our Palestinian neighbors are subjected to endless occupation and subjugation.”On March 7, 2017, Feldman was listed on Facebook as a co-host for an SJP UMD event promoting the group’s BDS campaign.
On January 22, 2019, Feldman co-wrote an article with a representative from the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and one from the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), which listed different challenges to states’ anti-BDS laws.
On April 25, 2019 Feldman posted to Facebook a recap of the debate over the UMD BDS bill, which failed to pass 16-64.
Feldman wrote: “This is just like the South Africa divestment movement: A contingent of white, middle class students who endlessly make excuses for an increasingly fascistic ethno-state slowly become isolated as students who value justice and equality for all see their numbers explode...Standing on the right side of history is a choice Jewish Americans such as myself make every day. Fascists, join us on the right side of history or get rolled over. #DivestUMD.”
On December 13, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “‘It's time America leverages its power’ That I agree with. We need to stop giving aid to Israel while it literally keeps 2 million Gazans starving to death. Garnering the political will to do so req's politicians like you to stop repeating the same canned talking points.”
On December 30, 2019, Feldman tweeted: “Humanitarian aid to Gaza has done little to prevent the area from becoming a full-blown catastrophe. I know this because I've had direct contact for years with people who work with partners on the ground. It won't stop until aid to Israel is suspended and the siege lifted.”
SJP UMD and UMD MASC Partnership
Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) at the University of Maryland (UMD), SJP UMD, partners with the Muslim Alliance for Social Change (MASC) at UMD (UMD MASC) to coordinate anti-Israel activity on campus.In February 2017, UMD MPA was reportedly founded as the UMD Muslim Political Alliance (UMD MPA) by two SJP UMD activists, Sarah Eshera and Saarah Javed.
UMD MASC and SJP UMD - Anti-Israel Activism (2015-2017)
On April 27, 2017, UMD MASC promoted on Facebook a “mass boycott” event titled: “Boycott Israel Fest & Teach-In,” UMD MASC aimed to protest a previously scheduled “Israel Fest” event on campus.Israel Fest is an annual, non-political event held at UMD to celebrate Israeli culture, organized by the Jewish Student Union (Maryland JSU) and other pro-Israel student groups at UMD.
UMD MASC (formerly UMD MPA) posted a letter in their Facebook post, co-authored with SJP UMD, that called on the entire campus community to boycott the Israel Fest celebration.
The Facebook post claimed: "there was a great deal of frustration among students and faculty alike that this event continues to take place on our campus...we find this not only unnecessary, but insulting..."
The Facebook post continued: “But with the annual celebrations of Israel on our campus, we are directly excusing the atrocities it has committed...We are encouraging the celebration of an apartheid state..”
During the week preceding the festival celebrating Israeli culture, SJP members reportedly chalked "Boycott Israel Fest" all over the campus.
On May 2, 2017, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) and SJP UMD co-hosted a boycott protest of Israel Fest and a teach-in, which featured a “mock apartheid” wall.
The barrier displayed text which read: “ISRAELI APARTHEID WALL,” “FREE GAZA,” as well as “BDS.”
Israel’s security barrier, built as a deterrent to Palestinian terror attacks, is 97% low chain-link barrier. The concrete portions of the fence were built in response to Palestinian sniper attacks.
On October 21, 2015, SJP UMD littered UMD’s campus with posters of misleading maps that present lands that were previously controlled by Britain, Egypt and Jordan as autonomous “Palestinian land,” that were then stolen by Israel.
UMD MASC and SJP UMD - 2017 Divestment Resolution
On April 10, 2017, Sarah Eshera, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) founder and president, promoted on Facebook a BDS event scheduled for April 18, 2017 “in anticipation for the SGA [UMD Student Government Association (UMD SGA)] bill that MPA and SJP have put forth urging UMD to divest from Israel, which will be voted on the following day on Wednesday April 19th.”On February 12, 2017, the UMD student newspaper, DBK News, reported that SJP UMD was “calling on University of Maryland administration to boycott companies and institutions that promote the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.”
DBK news quoted SJP UMD’s president, Miranda Mlilo, as saying: “SJP doesn't know what organizations this university may be invested in, but that they may file a public records request to find out."
On November 16, 2017, DBK news reported that the UMD SGA Student Affairs Committee returned a negative report on the BDS resolution a day earlier, by a vote of 1-21, with three abstentions.
DBK news further reported that SGA legislators debated on whether to overturn the Student Affairs Committee decision to reject the BDS resolution. The legislators decided not to overturn the negative report in a 23-13 vote, with one abstention.
UMD MASC and SJP UMD - Promoting Anti-Israel Activists (2015-2017)
On April 18, 2017, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) and SJP UMD co-hosted a BDS event featuring Taher Herzallah and Kareem El-Hosseiny, in anticipation of a divestment vote reportedly scheduled for the following day.Taher Herzallah, is the Associate Director of Outreach & Grassroots Organizing of American Muslims for Palestine (AMP). Herzallah has expressed support for violence against Israeli Jews, spread an anti-Semitic conspiracy theory and posted pro-terrorist imagery to social media.
Kareem El-Hosseiny has served as the Government Relations Coordinator at AMP since August 2016. He participated in a pro-Hamas aid convoy to Gaza, has promoted anti-Semitism, defended violent agitators and demonized American Jewish organizations, Israel [00:07:40] and Zionism.
The April 18, 2017 event was originally billed as “A Conversation with Yousef Munayyer.” From 2015 to 2019, Yousef Munayyer was the Executive Director of the U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights (USCPR), formerly known as the U.S. Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation (ETO).
However, on April 16, 2017, UMD MASC (formerly MPA) wrote on the event’s Facebook page that Munayyer could not attend and that “in his place we will have Taher Herzallah from American Muslims for Palestine. We're so happy to be hosting him!”
SJP UMD - Disrupting a Pro-Israel Event (2016)
On April 19, 2016, SJP UMD held a protest and “die-in” to disrupt the annual Israel Fest, an annual cultural event at UMD.SJP UMD began [00:00:45] its protest with a rally outside McKeldin Library, where leading SJP UMD activist Mohammad Sajjad Soltanmohammadi, a supporter of both Hezbollah and Hamas, led [00:01:32] the chant: “[Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu what do you say, how many kids did you kill today?”
The demonstrators called [00:01:42] for shutting down Israel’s “border wall” and accused [00:01:53] Israel of “ethnic cleansing” and having “racist policies.” Some demonstrators held [00:01:57] signs painted with simulated blood stains, reading: “Zionism Kills.”
The chant “From the River to the Sea, Palestine will be free” has also been employed by Hamas leader Khaled Mashal to call for the replacement of Israel with an Islamic state. It is a chant calling to dismantle the State of Israel.
Following the rally, Soltanmohammadi led [00:10:42] the protestors in a march on Israel Fest, where, against campus rules, they laid [00:12:41] down on an adjacent walkway for the die-in. During the march toward Israel Fest, they chanted [00:11:21]: “Israel is an apartheid state. Israel is a terror state. Israel is a racist state.”
During the die-in, students lay [00:12:45] on the ground near the Israel Fest participants and blocked student walkways. Several SJP UMD activists refused [00:16:41] police requests to get off the ground and clear the area.
During the die-in, students lay [00:12:45] on the ground near the Israel Fest participants and blocked student walkways. Several SJP UMD activists refused [00:16:41] police requests to get off the ground and clear the area.
Many demonstrators continued to occupy the space, reportedly in defiance of university rules and engaged [00:17:07] in heated confrontations with campus police.
SJP UMD - Demonizing Israel (2017)
On February 26, 2017, SJP UMD released an online petition on Twitter titled: “OFFICIAL STATEMENT ON BDS,” addressed to the UMD SGA and UMD President, Wallace Loh.The petition alleged that “Innocent children are forced from their homes to make room for Israeli settlers” and condemned Israeli checkpoints, which were built to stop suicide bombings and other terror attacks.
Israeli checkpoints were builtto protect Israel's civilian population against terror attacks, such as suicide bombings.
The petition also claimed: “White phosphorous, a chemical weapon which kills indiscriminately by burning its victims from the inside, has even been used on civilians in Gaza white phosphorous to kill Palestinian civilians in Gaza.” The charge against Israel of using chemical weapons has been made and debunked on multiple occasions.
The petition concluded by casting Israel in the role of apartheid South Africa and stated: “In 1989, our university boldly stood against South African apartheid by divesting from the institutions which supported racist policies in that country. Our goal is to have our university take a strong stand against injustice again.”
SJP UMD - Promoting Incitement (2015-2017)
On October 20, 2015, during the “Knife Intifada” then raging in Israel, SJP UMD hosted an event titled: “Palestine Under Attack.”October 2015 saw a wave of stabbings, known as the “Knife Intifada,” where young Palestinians throughout Israel were stabbing and attempting to stab Israeli civilians. The upsurge in violence across Israel was incited by Palestinian political and religious leaders. The attacks were sparked and fueled by Palestinian leaders propagating the libel that Israel intended to desecrate the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem.
The SJP UMD event’s Facebook description read: “In light of Israel's escalation of violence against the Palestinians, SJP is holding an emergency forum.”
The SJP UMD event’s Facebook description went on to say: “...dozens were killed by the Israeli police, soldiers and settler lynch mobs. The Israeli military has also been occupying Al-Aqsa . Come and take action in support of the Palestinian people!”
SJP UMD’s post also featured a graphic with the phrases ‘Hands Off Al-Aqsa’ and ‘Boycott Israel Now!’”
Masked Palestinian rioters barricaded themselves inside the Al Aqsa Mosque on September 13, 2015. The rioters set off fireworks, starting a small fire and threw stones and debris stored inside at Israeli police. Pipe bombs were later found by Israeli police. The rioters had prepared the pipe bombs to launch at Jewish visitors to the Temple Mount plaza.
On November 16, 2015, SJP UMD hosted Washington, D.C.-based Reverend Graylan Hagler, as part of "Unity Week," organized by the Muslim Student Association (MSA).
Hagler has reportedly said the Zionist lobby controls American leaders and the entire international community. Hagler has also reportedly downplayed the horror of the Holocaust, saying: “I’m not denying there was a Holocaust...but it was a Holocaust.”
Hagler has also romanticized Palestinian violence against Israel and compared Palestinian terrorism to anti-police demonstrations in Black American neighborhoods.
SJP UMD - Hosting an Anti-Israel Agitator (2015)
On April 28, 2015, SJP UMD hosted an event featuring anti-Israel activist Abbas Hamideh, titled: “Remembering Al-Nakba 1948 (Catastrophe Day).”Nakba is an Arabic term for “catastrophe” and refers to the outcome of the 1948 Arab-Israeli War. It is a term often used to delegitimize the creation of the State of Israel.
Hamideh is the co-founder of Al-Awda, The Palestine Right to Return Coalition (Al Awda), which is known for spreading anti-Semitism and hatred of Israel, denying Jewish history and supporting terrorism.
The event’s Facebook description read: “This day symbolizes the exodus of the Palestinian people from their land as Zionist militias ethnically cleansed their communities and founded the State of Israel, creating what Badil and the Institute for Middle East Understanding calls the largest and longest-standing refugee populations in the world.”
On April 29, 2015, SJP UMD posted a group photo on Facebook of SJP activists with Hamideh following the event.
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.
- Status:
- Unknown
- University:
- Maryland
- Organizations:
- AMP,
- BDS,
- more...
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- Last Modified:
- 06/23/2025
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Infamous Quotes
“As a Jew, it pains me to see Israeli apartheid maintained in my name.”
“As a Jewish student, I believe the Jewish community worldwide has been taken hostage by the brutal Israeli war machine that commits atrocities in our name.”
“Young Jews know Israel isnt our salvation.”
“If Caligula could appoint his horse as a consul surely Taglit-Birthright Israel could find a less hairy a** to ride on?”
