Hamas, Hezbollah, and American college students: An analysis into college students’ sympathy for the Palestinian cause

Last Saturday, I had the privilege of attending a Model UN meeting at my local university. Before the formal activities started, the university brought out a few speakers, one of whom was a humanities professor. In her emotional speech, the professor urged us to “halt arms to Israel” and to “join the revolution.” Though her words were met with mumbles and scattered applause, other students seemed visibly excited.

Throughout the rest of the day, I kept seeing reminders of the professor’s speech: I spotted several university students wearing Arab keffiyehs - a symbol of the Palestinian resistance against Israel - and I noticed occasional anti-Israel posters spread throughout the campus.

Such circumstances aren’t just limited to this university. Since Hamas’ surprise invasion of Israel on October 7th and Israel’s subsequent bombardment/invasion of the Gaza strip, students across America have been rising up against Israel and for the Palestinian cause. Recently, students have set up encampments in several universities across the country, including UC Berkeley, NYU, and Columbia. Though the participants faced arrest, suspension, and even expulsion, they remained steadfast in their protest (Alonso, 2024).

So what motivates students to risk so much to gain potentially so little? Perhaps it is their concern for human rights. After all, Israel’s war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip has killed over thirty-three thousand Palestinians, displaced almost two million, and resulted in the destruction of 62% of housing units in the besieged enclave (Motamedi). However, these numbers are unconfirmed; they come from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry, which doesn’t distinguish between civilians and combatants. Additionally, one has to take into account the October 7th attacks, in which Hamas invaded Israel from their stronghold in the Gaza Strip, where they raped, massacred, and kidnapped over a thousand Israelis, including 360+ young people at the Nova music festival (“Hamas Massacre,” 2024). Though Israel has a duty to respond, it is easy to argue they have gone over the top with their response, and it is justified to feel the need to protest.

However, there have been several US-backed atrocities in recent history that never generated a similar burst of outrage. One is the ongoing Turkish bombardment of Kurdistan (Turkey is backed by the US through NATO), which kills dozens of civilians at a time (Whaibe, 2023). Another is the US-backed Saudi bombing of Yemen, which has killed over 24,000 civilians and Houthi militants as of June 2022 (Lee).  

What is the actual cause of the pro-Palestinian sentiment on American college campuses? Perhaps it is more than a concern for human rights. Perhaps it is something greater- a rebellion against the status quo. According to the National Library of Medicine, young people feel the natural urge to rebel when they believe their freedoms are jeopardized (Steindl, 2015). After 10/7, America and the majority of the Western world expressed their ironclad support for Israel; perhaps this could have prompted college students to rebel against the social norm and “join the revolution.” 

Additionally, several institutions were already in place to ensure students embrace the Palestinian cause. For the past 75 years, the Arab world has been plagued by a hatred of Israel - Qatar, an oil-rich gulf nation, is no exception. Recently, Qatar has poured billions of dollars into American universities to enforce their Islamist and anti-Zionist ideologies; between 2012 and 2018, they donated $1.3 billion to elite universities, such as Georgetown, to gain influence (Al Arabiya English, 2018). They also directly donated $1.95 billion to Cornell’s academic institutions between 2001 and 2024, making them the largest exterior financier of US education (ISGAP, 2024). They have also spent over $400 million to directly support Palestinian activism at several elite universities (including Georgetown) (Friedman, 2024).

Overall, these factors could have resulted in the mass protests we see on college campuses today. And, as evident by many of their actions (including American flag burnings), many of the activists aren’t just rebelling against Israel but against the entire Western-led world order. Some are willing to declare their support for terrorist groups, including Hezbollah, to prove just that (Impelli, 2024). 

Such violent ideologies are destined to lead to aggressive actions. Though many of the protesters are peaceful, some have damaged property, targeted students, and called for the destruction of Israel, ignoring the deep, historic Jewish connection to the land (Danzig, 2024). However, we must understand berating the students won’t stop them from doing what many young people have done in the past: rebelling against the status quo (represented by Israel and the Western world) and joining the new “resistance.”

Works Cited

Alonso, Johanna. “Why Are Students Camping on University Lawns?” Inside Higher Ed , Inside Higher Ed , 24 Apr. 2024, www.insidehighered.com/news/students/free-speech/2024/04/24/students-set-encampments-coast-coast. 

Danzig, Micha. “Modern Day Blood-Libels Make It Clear – the Protests Themselves Are Antisemitic.” Jewish Journal, Jewish Journal, 30 Apr. 2024, jewishjournal.com/commentary/opinion/370949/modern-day-blood-libels-make-it-clear-the-protests-themselves-are-antisemitic/. 

“FOLLOW THE MONEY Qatar and the Muslim Brotherhood Funding of Higher Education in the United States.” Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy, isgap.org/follow-the-money/. Accessed 22 May 2024. 

Friedman, Yaron. “Pro-Palestine Protests Are Generously Funded by Donors Promoting Radical Islam Studies - Analysis.” The Jerusalem Post, The Jerusalem Post, 30 Apr. 2024, www.jpost.com/middle-east/pro-palestine-protests-are-generously-funded-by-donors-promoting-radical-islam-studies-analysis-799154. 

“Hamas Massacre: Documentation of Crimes Against Humanity.” Saturday-October-Seven, Israeli Government, 10 Jan. 2024, saturday-october-seven.com/. 

“How Qatar Is Paying US Institutions $1.3 Billion to Gain ‘Dubious Influence’ .” Al Arabiya English, Saudi Government, 20 Dec. 2018, english.alarabiya.net/features/2018/12/20/How-Qatar-is-paying-1-3-billion-to-US-institutions-to-gain-dubious-influence. 

Impelli, Matthew. “Hezbollah Flag at US College Protest Sparks Fury.” Newsweek, Newsweek, 26 Apr. 2024, www.newsweek.com/pro-palestinian-protest-princeton-hezbollah-1894654. 

Lee , Joyce Sohyun, et al. “Saudi-Led Airstrikes in Yemen Have Been Called War Crimes. Many Relied on U.S. Support. - Washington Post.” The Washington Post, The Washington Post, 4 June 2022, www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/interactive/2022/saudi-war-crimes-yemen/. 

Motamedi, Maziar, and Alia Chughtai. “Israel’s War on Gaza – Six Relentless Months of Death and Destruction.” Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera, 7 Apr. 2024, www.aljazeera.com/news/2024/4/7/israels-war-on-gaza-six-relentless-months-of-death-and-destruction#:~:text=The%20war%20has%20damaged%20or,a%20million%20people%20without%20homes. 

Steindl, Christina, et al. “Understanding Psychological Reactance: New Developments and Findings.” National Library of Medicine, National Library of Medicine, 2015, www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4675534/#c8. 

Whaibe, Myriam. “The Full Costs of Turkey’s Bombing Campaign in Northeast Syria.” Human Rights Watch, Human Rights Watch, 3 Nov. 2023, www.hrw.org/news/2023/11/03/full-costs-turkeys-bombing-campaign-northeast-syria.