Journal of hatred

Representatives of Islamic movement's northern faction distribute journal to Arab students at Haifa University honoring 'great leaders of Arab nation' Nasrallah, bin Laden

Eitan Glickman|Published: 11.29.06 , 09:30

A student journal recently distributed among Arab students in Haifa University displays picture of Osama bin Laden, former Palestinian Authority Chairman Yasser Arafat, Hizbullah Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah and Fatah leader Marwan Barghouti, with attached pages describing their terror activities and details of their lives.

The journal, distributed by student representatives of the Islamic movement's northern faction in the university's Mount Carmel campus, is causing a storm of fury among many students and professors at the university.

"It is unacceptable," said David, a student. He raged against the "first-rate incitement material" that included memorial dates such as September 11, the date of the kidnapping of Israel Defense Forces soldiers on the northern border, Nasrallah's birthday, and more.

Yedioth Aharonoth discovered that the journal was funded by a branch of the Islamic movement located in the Arab town of Umm al-Fahem.

Two residents of the town distributing the journals said: "There's no provocation. We mention Nasrallah and other great leaders of the Arab people. If someone doesn't like it, it's his problem."

"We don't understand the fuss," the Arab students' council said. "It's a journal for Arab students at the university. The student body of the Islamic movement stands behind the distribution of these journals."

"It's important for us to note important dates for the Arab nation. Nasrallah and Arafat are both leaders of the Arab people. We mention Nasrallah and the date of the kidnapping of the two soldiers and the killing of eight others as a brave operation that led to the Lebanon war."

"We mention Ariel Sharon's visit to the Temple Mount, which started the intifada. We mention Sept. 11th and al-Qaeda. These things, and leaders like our leader Marwan Barghouti who is imprisoned in one of your jails, and the date of Arafat's death are very important."

"It's important for the Arab public to remember its leaders, the people who are paving the way for its independence, so why can't we mention bin Laden or Nasrallah?"

Students: This is incitement

Many angry students appealed to the student union to prevent the distribution of the journals.

"We don't understand why they need to distribute journals honoring murderous leaders with blood on their hands, with pictures of despicable murderers and terror attacks that cost the lives of innocents," they stated.

"We're in shock. This is incitement," they added.

The student union responded that "we are shocked and appalled by the fact that journals were distributed on campus with such pictures of terrorists who publicly called for the annihilation of the State of Israel."

The university administration said that the journals don't contain problematic information. When it was brought to the dean's attention that it contained lauding depictions of terror leaders such as Nasrallah and of Sept. 11, the statement was not renewed.

"We've learned our lesson and will pay full attention in the future to pictures within the material approved for university distribution," a statement said.