Birzeit University, a Palestinian institution where Harvard students can participate in a summer course on public health, has been found to glorify "martyrs" following the October 7 massacre by Hamas.
The course, titled "Palestine Social Medicine," is scheduled for August at the West Bank-based university. The official X account of Birzeit University posted a message endorsing the aforementioned sentiment just three days after the Iranian-backed Palestinian terrorist group initiated its indiscriminate killing spree in Israel.
In reaction to Israel's bombing of the Islamic University in Gaza, Birzeit University extended its "sincere condolences" to the staff and students affected by the conflict. "Glory for martyrs, recovery for wounded ones, and freedom for the captives," the university further stated.
Two months on, the university commemorated the anniversary of the violent First Intifada, hailing it as a "perfect example of national unity." As reported by the Daily Wire, a significant portion of the university's population voted for a Hamas-affiliated group during student government elections, a victory that was celebrated by Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.
Stephanie Simon, Harvard's Dean for Communications and Strategic Initiatives, stated that the association with Hamas would not influence the decision to partner with the university. "Student government elections at Birzeit typically involve candidates affiliated with each of the major political parties in the region, including Hamas," she said. "These student government elections are not germane to and have not affected the FXB Centers work with the scholars and students at Birzeits Institute of Community and Public Health."
In September 2023, the IDF arrested Abdulmajid Hassan, the student government president, along with seven other students, on accusations of planning a terrorist attack.
The course, first offered in 2023, is a joint venture between Harvard's Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights and the Institute of Community and Public Health at Birzeit University.
The course will be held at the institute, with field trips around the West Bank and Israel. However, due to the current circumstances, a "contingency plan" has been established to host students in Amman, Jordan, or Beirut, Lebanon. A final decision will be made in the early spring.
During the three-week course, students will explore the "social, structural, political, and historical aspects that determine Palestinian health beyond the biological basis of disease." The curriculum will emphasize "self-awareness and structural humility," "settler colonialism and its manifestations in Palestine," "health and racism," and other related subjects.
The course will accommodate ten students from the United States and an additional 20 Palestinians. However, preference will be given to Harvard students in the former group.
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