Israel said it is firmly behind the Trump administration for taking action against antisemitism at Columbia University in New York City, according to Tsach Saar, deputy counsel general of Israel in New York.
"The first and the most important thing is that all students feel safe – Israeli Jews, non-Jews, students of all faiths, that they feel safe on campus and, of course, keep the freedom of speech," Saar told Thursday's "National Report." "We do applaud the Trump administration for the steps that are being taken. This is the legal process here in the United States, and it plays out, and we applaud the Trump administration for doing this and enforcing it.
"We see now that the presidents of the universities and people, when people are held accountable for what they are doing, they think twice before they intimidate, before they attack. There's a very, very clear difference between violence and freedom of speech."
The Wall Street Journal reported Wednesday that Columbia is very close to meeting the Trump administration's demands to potentially restore $400 million in yanked federal funding.
'Federal officials said the school must immediately place its Middle Eastern, South Asian, and African Studies Department into an "academic receivership for a minimum of five years," ban masks on campus meant to intimidate or conceal the wearer's identity, adopt a new definition of antisemitism, do away with its current discipline process for students, and develop a plan to "reform undergraduate admissions, international recruiting, and graduate admissions practices."
Saar also commented on the latest developments in the Israel-Hamas war, now in its 17th month, acknowledging dozens of hostages are still being held by the terrorists in Gaza.
"Unfortunately, it's been after almost two months of ceasefire, Hamas has rejected two U.S.-backed proposals for a hostage deal," he said. "We know that there are still 59 Israeli and non-Israeli hostages held in Gaza in brutal and inhumane conditions, and this is our moral obligation to bring them home safely as soon as possible.
"We know, unfortunately, that some of them are not alive anymore and this is very, very difficult. And afterwards, we saw Hamas is still keeping and rebuilding its military capabilities."
"We will not let it happen," Saar continued. "The two goals of the Israeli operation are clear. One is the release of the hostages. Second is eradication of Hamas, its governance in Gaza Strip. We see it just yesterday, they fired missiles at Israel. We're not going to sit quietly and wait for them to attack us. That's not going to happen."
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Nicole Weatherholtz ✉
Nicole Weatherholtz, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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