Former US president criticised Gaza protests, claiming they wrongly label opposition to Israel as antisemitic
Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump told Jewish donors on Thursday that if elected, he would take action against US universities propagating what he described as “antisemitic content.”
He warned that such universities could lose their accreditation and federal funding if they failed to stop promoting this type of propaganda. Trump delivered these remarks remotely to over 1,000 Republican Jewish Coalition donors in Las Vegas.
Protests had recently spread across college campuses, with students opposing Israel’s military actions in Gaza and urging universities to cut ties with companies supporting Israel.
Republicans argue that these protests demonstrate antisemitic sentiments among some Democrats. On the other hand, protest groups contend that their criticism is directed at Israeli policies and should not be labelled as antisemitism.
While the federal government does not directly accredit universities in the US, it oversees private organizations responsible for accreditation. The Association of American Universities, representing 69 major US universities, did not immediately respond to the situation.
Trump also declared that he would prohibit refugee resettlement from areas he described as “terror-infested,” such as Gaza, and pledged to arrest those involved in pro-Hamas protests, apparently referring to student demonstrators.
During Trump’s presidency, from 2017-2020, the US admitted 114 Palestinian refugees, while under Biden, 124 were admitted between 2021 and mid-2023. Trump did not provide detailed Middle Eastern policy proposals but warned that a presidency under Vice President Kamala Harris would be disastrous for Israel, predicting that Israel would be abandoned if she were in charge.
A spokesperson for Harris, Morgan Finkelstein, refuted Trump’s claims, noting her lifelong support for Israel and her opposition to antisemitism. Finkelstein also pointed out Trump’s past controversial associations, such as dining with white supremacist Nick Fuentes and making ambiguous comments following the 2017 rally in Charlottesville, Virginia.
Harris has supported President Joe Biden’s firm backing of Israel, despite calls from some Democrats to reconsider military aid to Israel due to the significant Palestinian casualties in Gaza. Harris has called for a ceasefire, labelling the situation in Gaza as “devastating.”
The conflict has caused widespread destruction. Since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, health authorities in Gaza report that over 40,000 Palestinians have been killed, while Israeli figures show that 1,200 Israelis lost their lives, and around 250 were taken hostage. The resulting military offensive displaced almost all of Gaza’s 2.3 million residents, leading to hunger and prompting genocide allegations against Israel, which it denies.
