Former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett is scheduled to speak Tuesday evening at Columbia University, which has banished three pro-Palestine students this year alone.
Bennett will be speaking at an invitation-only event hosted by Columbia/Barnard Hillel's Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life and the Columbia School of International and Public Affairs' Institute of Global Politics on Tuesday, according to Jewish Insider.
Bennett's appearance is sure to ruffle feathers since he boasted about killing Arabs while serving as the Minister of Economy and Religious Services in 2013. At the time, Bennett was against Israel releasing 104 long-term Palestinian prisoners during peace talks, The Times of Israel reported.
"If you capture terrorists, you simply have to kill them," Bennett declared.
When he was told that was illegal, he stated, "I already killed lots of Arabs in my life, and there is absolutely no problem with that."
“I already killed lots of Arabs in my life, and there is absolutely no problem with that.” — Naftali Bennett https://t.co/SOpXjcgri8 pic.twitter.com/nTvbovIVci
— Brian Tashman (@briantashman) March 4, 2025
The New York university became the first in the nation to expel pro-Palestine students after two were dismissed from Columbia's Barnard College last month for "allegedly protesting the University's investments in genocide and for allegedly participating in the occupation of Hind's Hall," according to a statement from the Columbia University Apartheid Divest (Cuad) Defense Working Group obtained by Middle East Eye. The students disrupted a session of a "History of Modern Israel" class, per USA Today.
The expulsions came on the heels of President Donald Trump's Jan. 29 executive order, "Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism," which aims to "eradicate antisemitic harassment in schools and on college campuses." He also promised to revoke student visas for anyone who participates in pro-Palestine protests.
Furthermore, Trump set up a federal taskforce that investigated Columbia and nine other universities because "of allegations that the schools may have failed to protect Jewish students and faculty members from unlawful discrimination, in potential violation of federal law." The taskforce's visit prompted the university to expel the third student, who participated in last spring's protests on the campus, Middle East Eye reported.
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