Outrage, Mourning, as BU Community, Leaders, Respond to Israel-Hamas War
Palestinians inspecting a destroyed building after Israeli air strikes in the Gaza Strip city of Khan Younis on Tuesday, October 10. Photo via AP/Hatem Ali
Outrage, Mourning, as BU Community Responds to Israel-Hamas War
Leaders of Israeli and Palestinian student groups speak out, BU leaders issue statement, while a vigil is planned for Wednesday
Following a weekend of sudden and shocking bloodshed in the Middle East after a deadly surprise attack from Gaza by Hamas and declaration of war by Israel, raw emotions across the Boston University community ranged from anger to sadness. In an official statement on Tuesday afternoon, the University condemned the eruption of violence, while students supporting Israel and those supporting Palestine also released strongly worded statements defending their side.
A vigil organized by BU Students for Israel is planned for 5 pm Wednesday on Marsh Plaza.
“We write in response to the horrific conflict taking place in the Middle East,” the University said in an official statement (read the full statement at the end of this article). “We are appalled by and condemn the attack by Hamas on the State of Israel and especially the intentional and large-scale targeting of noncombatants. The resulting war will senselessly claim innocent victims on all sides. We are acutely aware that there are many in our community who have close and strong connections to the region and who have relatives and friends affected by the war that is now a reality.”
The latest conflict erupted after Hamas, the Palestinian military group that controls the Gaza strip, attacked Israel and held over 150 Israelis hostage, threatening to execute them. Israel responded with massive missile strikes on Gaza cities, and the Israeli Minister of Defense ordered that no water, food, or electricity be allowed into the country. More than 1,600 Israelis and Palestinians have been killed since the conflict began, including 14 American citizens, and thousands more have been injured.
On Monday, the BU Dean of Students office reached out separately to offer support to students with addresses in Israel, Gaza, and the West Bank, encouraging those 22 students to contact Crisis Counseling, Behavioral Medicine, the University Chaplains Office at Marsh Chapel, or the Dean of Students Office.
“During these difficult times, please rely on the services provided at Boston University to help you along the way,” Jason Campbell Foster, BU dean of students, wrote in an email to the students.
(BU’s exchange partner in Israel is the University of Haifa, which is almost 100 miles away from Gaza. It has not started its new semester, has delayed programming for several weeks, and is prepared to start with hybrid or online learning if necessary.)
In an at times emotional interview Tuesday, Yonatan Manor (COM’25), president of BU Students for Israel, said he and many members of his club have family and friends in Israel affected by the violence, and one board member lost a close friend. Manor organized about 100 BU students to join a pro-Israel rally Monday night on Boston Common, where they heard from speakers, among them US Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Ed Markey (Hon.’04) (D-Mass.).
Manor says the BU administration’s lack of an immediate statement over the weekend regarding the conflict is partially what encouraged his group to organize the Wednesday vigil. “It will be a time where we take a moment to reflect on the lives lost and to remember the humanity behind it,” he says.
Asked to comment on the University’s official statement Tuesday, BU Students for Israel said they are disappointed in the lateness of the response, and that they “feel isolated” in this dark moment.
BU Students for Israel has also organized a fundraiser to support organizations such as Magen David Adom, the Israeli ambulance service, with a goal of raising $10,000 (they have currently raised $4,300).
BU Hillel leaders said they stand united with Israel and BU’s Jewish community. “Our hearts are heavy and tears are flowing as Israel faces unprecedented terror attacks on this religious holiday and against innocent women and men, children and the elderly,” they wrote. “We pray for all those affected and hope for an immediate end to this terrible tragedy in our Jewish homeland.”
In a statement on Instagram this weekend, BU Students for Israel said they and other members of the Jewish community “have family, friends, and loved ones who are scared for their lives, hiding in bomb shelters, dodging bullets, being kidnapped, lynched, and murdered simply for being Jewish. We pray for the Israeli people and hope they stay safe in the face of unprovoked aggression and barbarity from these terrorists.”
In its own statement posted to its social media accounts on Monday, BU’s Students for Justice in Palestine wrote that it “condemns the killing of innocent Israeli and Palestinian citizens,” adding that the group is “mourning all the lives lost.”
“It is important to note that the events that began on October 7, 2023, were not unprovoked,” the statement says, in part. “For over 74 years Israel has been occupying, ethnically cleansing, and violently oppressing Palestinians through the illegal implementation of an apartheid system. Palestinians are continuously terrorized by the Israeli Defense Force (IDF) and IDF-backed illegal Israeli settlers, in an effort to push Palestinians out of their land and further colonize the region.”
Nancy Harrowitz, director of BU’s Elie Wiesel Center for Jewish Studies and a College of Arts & Sciences professor of Italian and of Jewish studies, sent a letter to the center’s large email list of students, faculty, and alumni on Tuesday morning “about the murderous attacks in Israel and their profound effect upon the well-being of both Israelis and Jews across the globe. I share your utter outrage at these atrocities aimed at innocent civilians.”
She said that beyond contributing to relief efforts and attending demonstrations, educators have a responsibility to do more.
Harrowitz noted that the Wiesel Center’s course offerings help students understand “the antisemitism that so deeply motivates these attacks…as the upswing in antisemitism and anti-Zionism across the world affects its victims and the rest of the Jewish world in a brutal way.”
She notes that one course, The Israel-Palestinian Conflict, always fills immediately and there is often a waiting list, drawing students from Arab countries, Jewish students, and others, creating “a safe place to explore the complex issues that lie at the heart of the conflict.” And the center’s new Holocaust, Genocide, and Human Rights Studies program teaches “our interconnectedness: human rights violations that occur in one specific place affect us all. Antisemitism, racism, Islamophobia, and other forms of bigotry and prejudice are deeply and historically linked.”
Over the last few days, Manor says, he has felt supported by both the BU Jewish community and by his professors. He had to ask for a few project extensions, given his personal situation and his involvement in leading his group, and his professors were sympathetic and compassionate.
“But honestly, the silence from the non-Jewish community has been very loud,” he says. “I would please ask for all non-Jewish students to speak out and say something. People are worried that they may seem performative, but we need the support of as many non-Jewish people as we can… I would ask the non-Jewish student organizations to stand with the Jewish community to show that they care and want to have a safe environment for Jews on campus.”
On Tuesday, President Joe Biden addressed the United States from the White House. Describing the “atrocities” committed by militant group Hamas, Biden condemned what he called “the bloody hands of the terrorist group” and pledged to support Israel.
“We stand with Israel. We stand with Israel,” he said, with emphasis. “We will make sure that it has what it needs to take care of its citizens, defend itself, and respond to this attack.” Biden confirmed that US citizens are among those taken hostage by the militant group, adding, “as President, I have no higher priority than the safety of Americans being held hostage around the world.”
And within the United States, Biden said, the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation are working with local law enforcement departments to “identify and disrupt any domestic threat connected to these attacks.”
Members of the BU community who have been affected by ongoing conflict in Israel can find counseling and support through Behavioral Medicine, Crisis Counseling, the University Chaplains Office, and the Faculty & Staff Assistance Office. Find more information and recommendations from Student Health Services on how to take care of yourself here.
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