The war that began with Hamas's brutal attack on October 7, 2023, has almost immediately turned into a relentless and horrifying assault on the Palestinian civilian population of the Gaza Strip. Time and again, the Israeli government has shown that its declared war objectives — returning hostages and dismantling Hamas's rule — are a pretext for erasing Palestinian existence in the Gaza Strip, or at the very least, large parts of it. This is being done by destroying all systems of life, health, education, culture, and religious beliefs; by extensive harm to journalists and media; repeated transfer and displacement of populations between different areas; by denying basic living conditions, starvation, and killing of thousands, including a high number of children and women. As an organization of 900 academics who are citizens of Israel, we promptly sounded an alarm about Israel’s war crimes and the heavy toll they are taking, including the destruction of Gaza's higher education system. As the criminal offensive has expanded to Lebanon and intensified in Gaza and the West Bank, we are even more committed to raising our voices now.
The current attack on the northern Gaza Strip, which began on October 5 this year, aims to clear the area of its Palestinian residents and clearly constitutes a crime against humanity. At this moment, the Israeli military, under orders from the Israeli government, is committing severe and unprecedented crimes against a civilian population. Whether defined as ethnic cleansing, extermination, or genocide, it is the duty of every Israeli citizen to do all they can to stop these crimes. In addition to the immediate victims, these heinous actions are disastrous for people of both nations and the entire region.
Most of us live in Israel and speak Hebrew. We see how the government, popular media outlets, and large parts of civil society have rallied into a propaganda machine, manufacturing broad public consent in Israel and silencing dissenters and protestors, including survivors of October 7 and families of hostages, both Jewish and Arab. We are confident that our actions serve our loved ones and the long-term interests of everyone living between the river and the sea. As members of the academic community, we urge intellectuals, higher education institutions, and academic associations to join this call. We call on the international community, especially the United States that continues to arm and support Israel’s actions, to change course and do everything possible to stop these horrific crimes.
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