Hebrew U. condemns professor’s ‘filthy neo-Nazi’ remark

Hebrew University on Wednesday admonished a faculty member for calling Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked a “filthy neo-Nazi” in a Facebook post earlier in the week, saying the remark wasn’t reflective of the institution’s values.

Ofer Cassif, a political science professor at the Jerusalem university, responded to a fellow faculty member’s post critical of the Jewish Home politician on the social media network on Monday by charging that Shaked was both “responsible for the fascization [sic] of Israel” and indirectly responsible for genocide in Africa.

“This style is unacceptable, doesn’t reflect the university’s values and the spirit of tolerance and mutual respect the university supports,” Hebrew University President Menachem Ben Sasson said in a statement Wednesday.

Ben Sasson said that while faculty are entitled to express their views as private citizens, “the university condemns harmful discourse, verbal abuse and incitement” and “disapproves of [the remarks] in no uncertain terms.”

“They are extreme, incorrect and needlessly harmful,” he said.

He reiterated the university’s statement in the immediate aftermath of Cassif’s comment that so long as its staff are not using the lectern as a political pulpit, the institution isn’t responsible for its staff’s statements.

Cassif responded to a similarly critical post by former Peace Now director and Hebrew University professor Amiram Goldblum. Goldblum charged in all-caps that “SHAKED’S ELECTION CAMPAIGN WAS BASED AMONG OTHERS ON MONEY COLLECTED IN EXCHANGE FOR ARMS SOLD TO KILLERS IN SIERRA LEONE AND IN SOUTH AMERICA BY SHAKED’S FINANCIAL SUPPORTER WHO IS NOW IN JAIL IN BELGIUM AFTER BEING DETAINED BY INTERPOL FOR 8 MONTHS IN MONTENEGRO SINCE MARCH 2015.”

Goldblum also called on all European governments to block Shaked from visiting their countries.

Adding to Goldblum’s post, Cassif dubbed Shaked a “filthy neo-Nazi,” adding that “she’s not only a partner responsible for the fascization [sic] of Israel but also an indirect partner to genocide in Africa and crimes against humanity.”

Interviewed by Channel 2 later in the evening, Cassif said he would not backtrack on his comments. “I’m sorry that I didn’t say this earlier,” he said.

“I didn’t call Shaked a Nazi, but rather a neo-Nazi,” he said. “This is what it was like in 1935 when a nation was discriminated against.”

Education Minister Naftali Bennett, who leads the Jewish Home party, called the head of the Hebrew University, demanding an immediate response to Facebook posts by university professors critical of Shaked.

Bennett said in a statement that the posts were “the most serious incitement against a justice minister since the founding of the state.

“Academia cannot turn into a source of incitement against the minister responsible for the justice system in this country,” he went on.

Shaked has lodged a formal police complaint.