Malala Yousafzai, the Pakistani Nobel laureate, has reaffirmed her support for the Palestinians following backlash for her collaboration with Hillary Clinton. Despite facing criticism from social media users who condemned her partnership with Clinton, Yousafzai has expressed her unwavering condemnation of the Israeli government’s actions in Gaza.
House Speaker Kevin Johnson faced heckling and a protest encampment during his visit to Columbia University, where student demonstrations over the Israeli war in Gaza have been taking place. Despite the demands of protesters for universities to divest from Israel and pressure the US government to rein in Israeli strikes, the university agreed to 48 more hours of negotiations to end the protest encampment. Campus protests across the country have been met with shows of force from law enforcement, including arrests in Texas and the removal of tents by campus police in California. Amidst the political polarization, Johnson’s visit was seen as an attempt to support Jewish students and stand up to liberal activists.
House Republicans led by Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-Staten Island/South Brooklyn) faced a hostile reception at Columbia University on Wednesday while meeting with Jewish students to discuss on-campus antisemitism. Despite the group’s intent to address ongoing protests in support of the Palestinian people, their attempt to speak to a crowd outside the Low Memorial Library was met with boos and heckles. The Republicans, including Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.), were unable to fully articulate their stance due to the disruption caused by protesters. The group had also met with Columbia University President Minouche Shafik and a group of Jewish students prior to the attempted press conference.
House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) defended Israel and denounced antisemitism during a visit to Columbia University, where students have been protesting for days. Johnson called for the removal of protesters and urged Columbia’s president to resign, while Rep. Nicole Malliotakis (R-N.Y.) expressed shock at the demonstrations in New York City. Rep. Anthony D’Esposito (R-N.Y.) criticized protesters for receiving support from Hamas. Despite the protests, Senator Mark Warner (D-Va.) emphasized that students have the right to protest without shutting down schools.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has strongly condemned ongoing pro-Palestine protests at US universities, likening them to the atmosphere in German universities during the Nazi era. Netanyahu alleges an alarming rise in antisemitism on American campuses, with protests involving anti-Israel and anti-Jewish rhetoric. He calls for more to be done to address this disturbing trend.
Palestinian civil defense workers have discovered nearly 400 bodies in mass graves near the territory’s two largest hospitals, raising concerns about serious human rights violations. The bodies, including those of women and the elderly, were found with their hands bound and gunshot wounds to the head. The location of the mass graves in hospitals, which are entitled to special protection under international law, raises further alarms. The United Nations Human Rights Chief has called for an independent investigation into the matter.
Israeli warplanes have launched a fierce assault on the northern Gaza Strip for a second day, shattering weeks of relative calm. Israel has announced plans for an all-out assault on Rafah in the south, prompting warnings from Western countries. The offensive has killed at least 79 Palestinians in the past 24 hours, according to Gaza health authorities, and displaced thousands more. Residents are fleeing for their lives as Israeli forces target areas from where Hamas-aligned militants have fired rockets into Israel.
Students at the University of Texas at Austin held a protest in solidarity with Palestine, resulting in clashes with police. The demonstration was part of a broader wave of protests on college campuses across the nation following the arrests of over 100 people during a pro-Palestinian demonstration in Brooklyn. The protests have escalated in response to a financial aid package that includes funding for Israeli defenses and relief efforts in Gaza, where Israeli forces have killed over 1,200 people.
Hamas, the terrorist group controlling the Gaza Strip, has released a disturbing video of an American hostage, Hersh Goldberg-Polin. Goldberg-Polin, who was captured during an October 2023 attack, appears in the video with visible wounds, including the amputation of his left hand. In a statement, the Israeli government condemned the video as an act of psychological terrorism, and has accused Hamas of killing 70 hostages in airstrikes. The video has引发 outrage in Israel, with thousands of Israelis protesting against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and demanding that more be done to free the hostages. Negotiations between Hamas and Israel have stalled, with Hamas rejecting proposals for a ceasefire and the release of hostages. The international community has urged both sides to reach a deal to avoid further bloodshed and enable the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The UN’s human rights chief has expressed horror over the discovery of mass graves at two hospitals in Gaza after Israeli troops withdrew. The graves contain the remains of hundreds of people, who were reportedly killed by Israeli forces during the recent conflict. The UN has called for a credible investigation into the killings, while Palestinian officials say 283 bodies were exhumed from a temporary burial ground at Nasser Medical Complex.
