BOSTON (WHDH) - Students gathered on the campus of Harvard University Wednesday to demonstrate in support of Palestinians living in Gaza as the war between Hamas and Israel rages on.
SKY7-HD was over the scene as some students laid on the ground, holding a “die in” to protest the loss of life within Gaza. Later in the day, a different rally was underway around 4 p.m. at City Hall Plaza in Boston.
Demonstrations came on the same day that President Joe Biden visited Israel to show his support. Biden’s visit, in turn, came as Israeli forces have started allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza all while the area recovers from a deadly blast on Tuesday at a Gaza hospital that killed hundreds of people.
“Over the last week, I’ve had family members killed by the airstrikes and so, I think, especially yesterday was a hard day for me,” said one student at Harvard.
As part of their demonstration, protesters headed over the Charles River and congregated at the Harvard Business School in Allston where Former President Barack Obama was scheduled to take part in a panel discussion on the internet and social media.
Obama, though, was a no show after he woke up with “COVID-like symptoms” Wednesday morning, according to his senior technology advisor, Jason Goldman.
Protesters at Harvard Business School chanted slogans and faced a student who held up an Israeli flag.
In the wake of Tuesday’s hospital explosion, the student speaking with 7NEWS said her phone was full of WhatsApp video clips showing scenes of destruction.
“I think it’s very frustrating to feel like you don’t have a minute to grieve,” the student said. “And that’s why we’re out here today — because it’s important to speak truth to power and to be here and let people also know we are not going to forget them.”
The student said she was also in attendance Wednesday “[to] let my family know that I am here for them and that I am fighting for them.”
The Palestinian graduate student did not want to share her name, perhaps in part because protesters have been taking sides at Harvard.
Pro-Palestinian students who signed a letter blaming Israel for the surprise attack by Hamas on Israel earlier this month were previously publicly outed with their pictures plastered on a truck.
“I think it’s ridiculous,” the student said. “And I think doxxing is a tool to tear apart movements from inside and out.”
The student continued, saying “The only thing we can do is stand in solidarity together and not let them scare us.”
The White House announced Wednesday that a preliminary investigation found Israel was not responsible for the explosion at the hospital. Israeli intelligence, meanwhile, showed a rival Islamist militant group to Hamas, known as Palestinian Islamic Jihad is to blame after one of their rockets aimed at Israel misfired.
Students at Harvard on Wednesday said they blame Israel.
(Copyright (c) 2023 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)