Danny Ayalon
צילום: איי פי
Ambassador Snubs Columbia
Jewish students claim they are threatened, intimidated, by Columbia University professors due to pro-Israeli political views.
WASHINGTON D.C. - Israel’s Ambassador to the U.S. Danny Ayalon canceled a scheduled appearance at Columbia University due to pressure by Jewish community leaders who claim Jewish students are being harassed on campus.
Ayalon, who was supposed to attend a seminar titled “Re-thinking the Peace Process” at the university, said academic freedom is an integral part of Israeli democracy, “but it must not be used as a hostage to intimidate others’.
Dozens of Jewish students said they are subject to repeated threats and intimidation by Arab university professors due to their pro-Israeli political views.
Columbia student Tommy Shunfeld, who served in the IDF, said when he asked his professor Joseph Massad a question, the professor asked him “how many Palestinians have you killed?”
Student Dina Shenkar said Massad repeatedly ridicules her, and even asked her to leave class following an argument that erupted between them.
The Arab professors said the claims against them are false.
