Stand with Nadera
Professor Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, dear friend of Sabeel and colleague to many, was arrested yesterday over unfounded charges of incitement to violence and released today for lack of evidence. Professor Nadera is an internationally known feminist scholar and holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship.
The police raided and searched her home and she underwent harsh and dehumanizing interrogation. Palestinians in Israeli detention suffer physical, emotional, and mental violence. Fortunately, Professor Nadera was released today, but not until after terrible harassment at the hands of the police, Hebrew University administrators, and members of the Israeli public.
In a request from her loved ones:
"The more pressure everyone puts on the better. This is bubbling up to high level US leadership and if we don’t put pressure, they may not act. Take action today by expressing outrage for Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian’s arrest:
Know that she was mistreated, shackled, hands and feet, put in urine infested and cockroach infested spaces, was yelled at and intimidated during hours of interrogation and no sleep, and was denied medication. Israeli police should be sued and called out for false arrest."
Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian has been subjected to violent repression and harassment by the Hebrew University for speaking out against the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Furthermore, she was suspended from her teaching duties in March, though later reinstated once it became clear that there is no basis for the allegations against her.
The attack against Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian is one on all Palestinian scholars, students, and activists who bring to light the violent and genocidal nature of the Israeli state, which was on full view of the world during South Africa’s presentation at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). That presentation was sufficiently persuasive that the ICJ almost unanimously found in its provisional ruling on January 26, 2024 that Israel’s attack on Gaza is plausibly genocide.
We thus recognize this as an attempt to silence critique of Israeli state violence in a context of a society infused with open genocidal incitement and discourse. In fact, the Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the arrest and said that it "conveys an important message - whoever incites against the State of Israel, we will take action against them. They will not be able to hide behind their position or any other title." This silencing and repression endangers not only Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian, but also the lives and education of students who study, write, and are part of her intellectual community in the Hebrew University and beyond.
In a recent open letter, global academics declared that they "hold the Hebrew University of Jerusalem responsible for the arrest and detention of Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian because of its persistent and public repression of her academic freedom, which led directly to this week's arrest. We are outraged by this unlawful action, and we refuse the continuing violence the Israeli state and its institutions wage against the Palestinian people and those who stand for justice and freedom."
There are TWO actions involved:
Stand with Nadera
Professor Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, dear friend of Sabeel and colleague to many, was arrested yesterday over unfounded charges of incitement to violence and released today for lack of evidence. Professor Nadera is an internationally known feminist scholar and holds both U.S. and Israeli citizenship.
The police raided and searched her home and she underwent harsh and dehumanizing interrogation. Palestinians in Israeli detention suffer physical, emotional, and mental violence. Fortunately, Professor Nadera was released today, but not until after terrible harassment at the hands of the police, Hebrew University administrators, and members of the Israeli public.
In a request from her loved ones:
"The more pressure everyone puts on the better. This is bubbling up to high level US leadership and if we don’t put pressure, they may not act. Take action today by expressing outrage for Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian’s arrest:
Know that she was mistreated, shackled, hands and feet, put in urine infested and cockroach infested spaces, was yelled at and intimidated during hours of interrogation and no sleep, and was denied medication. Israeli police should be sued and called out for false arrest."
Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian has been subjected to violent repression and harassment by the Hebrew University for speaking out against the ongoing genocide in Gaza. Furthermore, she was suspended from her teaching duties in March, though later reinstated once it became clear that there is no basis for the allegations against her.
The attack against Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian is one on all Palestinian scholars, students, and activists who bring to light the violent and genocidal nature of the Israeli state, which was on full view of the world during South Africa’s presentation at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). That presentation was sufficiently persuasive that the ICJ almost unanimously found in its provisional ruling on January 26, 2024 that Israel’s attack on Gaza is plausibly genocide.
We thus recognize this as an attempt to silence critique of Israeli state violence in a context of a society infused with open genocidal incitement and discourse. In fact, the Minister of National Security Itamar Ben Gvir welcomed the arrest and said that it "conveys an important message - whoever incites against the State of Israel, we will take action against them. They will not be able to hide behind their position or any other title." This silencing and repression endangers not only Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian, but also the lives and education of students who study, write, and are part of her intellectual community in the Hebrew University and beyond.
In a recent open letter, global academics declared that they "hold the Hebrew University of Jerusalem responsible for the arrest and detention of Professor Shalhoub-Kevorkian because of its persistent and public repression of her academic freedom, which led directly to this week's arrest. We are outraged by this unlawful action, and we refuse the continuing violence the Israeli state and its institutions wage against the Palestinian people and those who stand for justice and freedom."
There are TWO actions involved: