Police, FBI probing second antisemitic assault at University of Pittsburgh in weeks

Student tells police he was attacked, physically and verbally, by a group of six to eight men after they noticed his Star of David necklace

The Cathedral of Learning towers over the University of Pittsburgh campus in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, September 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)
The Cathedral of Learning towers over the University of Pittsburgh campus in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, September 12, 2024. (AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar)

A Jewish student at the University of Pittsburgh was assaulted off campus early Friday morning by a group of six to eight men who used antisemitic and anti-Israel language during the attack, according to the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police.

A police report posted on Friday said the student told police that the group saw his Star of David necklace and then began making derogatory comments about Israel. The men and the student then began arguing, the report says, at which point at least three of the men “began punching and kicking him, causing him a bruised lip.” A bystander stopped the altercation.

A crime alert from the University of Pittsburgh Police also characterized the attackers as using “antisemitic language.”

Friday’s assault, which reportedly occurred at around 2 a.m., is the second attack on Jewish students at the University of Pittsburgh in less than a month. On August 29, a man wearing a keffiyeh and wielding a glass bottle was arrested after allegedly injuring two Jewish students, who were both wearing kippahs. The two students were heading to the campus Hillel building for a Shabbat dinner, the Hillel Jewish University Center said in a statement at the time.

In a statement on Friday following the incident, the Hillel said its staff spoke with the Jewish student and were “relieved that he was not seriously injured.” The statement called for the incident to be investigated as a hate crime.

“The safety of our students and staff is our highest priority, and we appreciate law enforcement’s quick response,” the statement said. “We know this is difficult news to hear, especially as we are heading into Shabbat.”

Rachel Kranson, director of religious studies at the University of Pittsburgh, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency on Monday that the attack would have ripple effects beyond the school because “the lines between ‘on,’ ‘near,’ and ‘off’ campus can feel quite thin” in a relatively small city with multiple urban campuses.

She noted that Squirrel Hill — a heavily Jewish neighborhood that was the site of the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue shooting, when 11 Jews were killed — is roughly two miles from where the alleged assault took place.

A makeshift memorial stands outside the Tree of Life Synagogue in the aftermath of a deadly shooting in Pittsburgh, October 29, 2018. (Matt Rourke/AP)

“My impression is that Jewish people have been feeling less safe in and around the city of Pittsburgh since the synagogue attack in 2018,” Kranson said. “The recent violence comes out of a different set of circumstances, but for those who live here, any violence targeting Jewish people in Pittsburgh can bring up horrific memories of that earlier attack and makes it feel all the more frightening. Emotionally, it is just hard to escape that context.”

The Pittsburgh Bureau of Police and the FBI are investigating the incident, with assistance from the University of Pittsburgh Police.

“The University of Pittsburgh unequivocally condemns antisemitism. Any violence or antisemitic acts against our community will not be tolerated,” the university said in a statement posted on Instagram. “Regardless of who it comes from, or who it is directed at, hate of any kind has no place in our community. We are offering resources and support to the victim, in addition to any other community members who are impacted by this horrific incident, now and in the future.”

Antisemitism has been on the rise in the US since the Hamas October 7 attacks, which saw terrorists invade Israel and kill some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnap 251.

Hostility toward Jews has been particularly prevalent on campuses, where anti-Israel protest encampments have often harassed Jewish students who support the Jewish state.

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