(ReliableNews.org) – On October 17, a rocket struck the Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza, where thousands of displaced people were seeking shelter and hospital personnel were treating the sick and wounded. The explosion allegedly claimed hundreds of innocent lives. Initial reports blamed the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) for the attack, which it quickly denied. They claimed there was evidence the bombing was the result of a misfire by the Palestinian Islamic Jihad fighting with Hamas. The hospital incident prompted many Harvard students to protest on the lawn outside the university.
On October 18, members of the Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) and Graduates 4 Palestine groups staged a die-in where hundreds of students laid out on the ground outside their dorms. They were holding signs that read “No Justice No Peace” and others calling for a cease-fire in the Middle East. The groups posted the protest resembling dead people scattered about on Instagram to spread awareness about the “ongoing Israeli genocide in Gaza.” The post claimed the students invited Harvard President Claudine Gay and former President Barack Obama to speak. Neither party attended the event.
According to the New York Post, over 30 Harvard University student organizations blame Israel for the recent Hamas surprise attack on October 7. They penned a letter entitled “Joint Statement by Harvard Palestine Solidarity Groups on the Situation in Palestine.” The students believe the Israeli government and how it has treated Palestinians over the last 75 years is “entirely responsible” for all the current violence in the region.
Many of the same students who signed onto that letter were the ones who organized and attended the die-in on campus. The PSC is calling for a walk-out at the university in protest of the violence and has been very active since the initial attack — mainly condemning Israel. However, their voices have come at a price, as many companies and executives have promised not to hire anyone who signed the previous letter. Still, many members of the groups seem undeterred.
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