As the war between Hamas and Israel continues, sympathy for Israel, especially among students and young people, is eroding in the face of what is perceived to be its disproportional retaliation against the civilian population of Gaza. Some call Israel’s attacks, that have thus far caused the death of 31,000 people in Gaza—a majority of whom are women and children–genocide.
In Italy, Maurizio Molinari, a pro-Israeli journalist and Editor-in-chief of La Repubblica, was prevented from speaking at a debate at Naples’s Federico II University. Molinari, who is Jewish, has been accused by some of being too sympathetic with Israel. The students who were protesting his presence held up a banner that read “Zionists out of universities”.
The event caught the attention of the nation’s President Sergio Mattarella, who on Friday intervened in Molinari’s defense.
Mattarella’s office said the head of State had phoned Molinari to express his solidarity. Reportedly Mattarella stated that “what must be banned from universities is intolerance. “Those who claim the right to impose their ideas by preventing people who think differently from expressing theirs are incompatible with higher education.”
Italy’s Jewish community also voiced solidarity with Molinari. “It is inconceivable and unacceptable that the Federico II University of Naples was forced to cancel a conference due to the intimidation and violence of a group of troublemakers against the speaker, La Repubblica Editor Maurizio Molinari, just because he is Jewish,” said a joint statement by the President of the Union of Italian Jewish Communities, Noemi Di Segni; the President of the Jewish Community of Rome, Victor Fadlun; and the President of the Jewish Community of Milan, Walker Meghnagi. “Just because he is still trying to act responsibly as a journalist. Universities are, or should be, a place of tolerance, inclusion, freedom of thought, respect for the person. These episodes only strengthen our sense of community. If anti-Semitism prevails, it is a defeat for everyone”.
The disruption by the protesting students was also condemned by Higher Education and Research Minister Anna Maria Bernini, who sent a message to Molinari expressing her consternation at what had happened. Indeed, she asked the Conference of Italian University Rectors (CRUI) to hold an extraordinary meeting on what she called an “intolerance emergency.”
Molinari wrote about the incident on the newspaper’s website, saying “the best response to every form of intolerance is respect for your neighbour”. He said he had offered to meet the protesters and listen to their views on the war in the Middle East but his offer was rejected. “I remain open to dialogue with them on any issue,” he added.
The protest enacted by the students at the Federico II University of Naples echoes many others that have been held in other countries. In the US, Ivy League institutions such as Columbia University and Harvard University have become battlegrounds between pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli factions and the uproar that has ensued has caused the resignation of several university presidents, notably University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill and Harvard president Claudine Gay.
