University presidents unveil support for Israel after criticism

University presidents announced a multifaith coalition Tuesday to unveil their support for Israel after numerous colleges have faced backlash for their response to Hamas’s attack.

Yeshiva University, a Jewish university, brought together Catholic schools, Christian schools, historically black colleges and universities and secular schools to release a statement showing their support for Israel. 

“We are horrified and sickened by the brutality and inhumanity of Hamas. Murdering innocent civilians including babies and children, raping women and taking the elderly as hostages are not the actions of political disagreement but the actions of hate and terrorism,” the statement reads.

“The basis of all universities is a pursuit of truth, and it is times like these that require moral clarity. Like the fight against ISIS, the fight against Hamas is a fight against evil. We, the presidents and chancellors of universities and colleges across the United States of America and the world, stand with Israel, with the Palestinians who suffer under Hamas’s cruel rule in Gaza and with all people of moral conscience,” the statement added.

The coalition is joined by the presidents of the University of Notre Dame, Baylor University, the United Negro College Fund Association of Catholic Colleges and Universities, the Council for Christian Colleges and Universities and the chancellors of The State University of New York and The City University of New York. 

The coalition comes after schools such as Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania have lost donors for their statements on the Hamas attack, with many saying it did not strongly condemn Hamas enough or show enough support for Israel.