From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, April 30, 2024
Biden condemns use of term ‘intifada’ during anti-Israel protests on college campuses – White House
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
US President Joe Biden condemns anti-Israel protesters’ use of the term “intifada” during the latest spate of demonstrations on American college campuses, the White House says.
For Israelis, the Arabic word “intifada,” literally “uprising,” conjures traumatic memories of mass waves of deadly terror attacks in 1987-1993 and again in the early 2000s.
Extremist protesters have regularly called for a renewed intifada against Israel and for “globalizing the intifada” in protests that have wreaked havoc across campuses in recent weeks.
Biden “condemns the use of the term ‘intifada,’ as he has the other tragic and dangerous hate speech displayed in recent days,” White House deputy press secretary Andrew Bates says in a statement.
“President Biden respects the right to free expression, but protests must be peaceful and lawful.”
“Forcibly taking over buildings is not peaceful – it is wrong. And hate speech and hate symbols have no place in America,” Bates adds.
The Times of Israel Community.