Sam Heft-Luthy

On October 7, 2023, Hamas murdered approximately 1,200 Israelis, kidnapped hundreds and wounded thousands. War crimes included mass rape and torture. Many Palestinian civilians participated in and supported the attacks, and Gazans working in the targeted Israeli communities gave intelligence to Hamas on where to strike.

For more information, see the Canary Mission page on Hamas.

“Free Palestine” is a chant that has been described as a "battle cry for the death of Jews.” In May 2025, two Israeli diplomats in Washington, D.C., were murdered by a gunman shouting “Free Palestine!” In June 2025, one pro-Israel activist was killed and over 25 were injured in Boulder, Colorado, when a man yelling “Free Palestine” firebombed them.

Israel and Egypt implemented a UN-approved [pp. 39–41] joint blockade of the Gaza Strip in 2011 to stop Hamas from acquiring more sophisticated rockets. Hamas went around the blockade by smuggling weaponry through tunnels under the Philadelphi corridor separating Gaza from Egypt.

The terms "empire" and "belly of the beast" are both euphemisms that anti-American activists use to describe the U.S. To learn more, see Canary Mission's campaign Bringing the War Home.

Zionism is the belief that Jews have the right to self-determination in their own national home, and the right to develop their national culture. Zionism is a core part of the identity of most Jews.

The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) highlights as one possible contemporary example of anti-Semitism: “Drawing comparisons of contemporary Israeli policy to that of the Nazis.” The U.S. State Department adopted the IHRA’s working definition of anti-Semitism in 2016. Over 40 countries have adopted the definition as well.

The stated mission of AIPAC is to “strengthen, protect and promote the U.S.-Israel relationship in ways that enhance the security of the United States and Israel.”

The implication that AIPAC buys political support for Israel has been described as playing into “anti-Semitic tropes” that led to “centuries of stereotypes about Jews using money to control the world.”

The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) highlights as one possible contemporary example of anti-Semitism: “Denying the Jewish people their right to self-determination, e.g., by claiming that the existence of a State of Israel is a racist endeavor.” The U.S. State Department adopted the IHRA’s working definition of anti-Semitism in 2016. Over 40 other countries have adopted the definition as well.

Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) is America’s largest socialist organization. Its core ideology includes anti-American, anti-Israel, anti-Western and abolitionist elements.

Following the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attacks against Israel, DSA condemned Israel, expressed support for Hamas, endorsed anti-Israel rallies and called for members to engage in anti-Israel activism. It condemned Israeli retaliatory attacks against the IRGC and Hezbollah, as well as the U.S. attacks against the Houthi terror organization, whose slogan reads: "...Death to America / Death to Israel / A Curse upon the Jews...”

DSA first endorsed the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement in 2017 and it has also condemned sanctions against countries like Iran and Cuba.

The group endorses far-left politicians on the local, state and federal levels. DSA also promotes anti-Israel agitators, including DSA members Rashida Tlaib, Zohran Mamdani and Linda Sarsour.

Young Democratic Socialists of America (YDSA), DSA’s youth section active in high schools and colleges, has co-organized anti-Israel protests across the U.S. since October 7, 2023, particularly the April 2024 pro-terror encampments on university campuses.

The Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) movement was founded by pro-terror activist Omar Barghouti in 2005 to turn “Israel into a pariah state, as South Africa once was.” Barghouti has also called for Israel's destruction and the BDS movement demands would result in that same goal.

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 infiltrating university campuses through lobbying for “BDS resolutions.” In these cases, student governments propose resolutions to boycott or divestment from Israel or Israeli-affiliated entities. 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 and pro-terror activism on campus.