Palestinian group horrifies Jew students at Cambridge with eulogy glorifying Yahya Sinwar

Jewish students at Cambridge University have criticised a pro-Palestine organisation for “glorifying” the architect of the October 7 massacre, after it re-posted a eulogy for Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas on its Instagram.

Cambridge for Palestine (CFP), which has over 11,000 followers on Instagram, shared the tribute of the terror chief last week on Friday, following his killing by Israel troops in Gaza on Wednesday.

The social media post contained the phrase “Glory to the resistance”, followed by its translation in Arabic, below a picture of Sinwar delivering a speech at a podium.

The commemorative post quoted Sinwar speaking in 2021 about how when he is killed, he will die as a martyr and a symbol of resistance.

Speaking in anticipation of his own death, Sinwar is quoted stating that his enemies “will say this is the photo of victory and the end of the battle and that we’ve assassinated Sinwar, now the battle is over. He wants a victory image, I’m ready.”

He goes on: “The greatest gift the enemy and occupation can give me is to assassinate me… I prefer to die a martyr than die a meaningless death.”

Below the text are two inverted red triangles, a symbol used by Hamas in videos and pictures to mark targets for attack.

Naomi Bernstein, a third year English student and a member of Cambridge University Jewish Society (CUJS), said: “As we approach the Hebrew anniversary of the October 7 attacks, it is troubling to see our fellow students glorifying its architect.

“We hope campus this year will be a safe and inclusive space for Jewish students to mourn the loss of innocent lives and express their identity.

“We, the Cambridge University Jewish Society, will continue to proudly mark the festivals as a community.”

The Cambridge University Israel Society (CUIS) was “horrified” by the social media tribute, saying that such posts contribute to an atmosphere of hostility for the community at Cambridge.

Gabrielle Apfel, president of the CUIS, said: “We at the Cambridge University Israel Society are horrified by the story shared by the group Cambridge for Palestine. This past year, Cambridge has been a hostile and unsafe environment for Israelis, Jews and Zionists and the glorification of Yahya Sinwar only serves to add to the already hostile atmosphere on campus.

“We call on the university and relevant authorities to take action against this glorification of terrorism.”

The post was originally shared by the Student Federation for a Liberated Palestine (SFLP), a national coalition of 21 campus groups with student members from Cambridge, Queen Mary University of London and Warwick University.

The student-led pro-Palestine organisation in Cambridge was responsible for the Gaza encampment on King’s Parade which was active for more than 100 days.

After months of pressure from the CFP calling on the university to divest in funds linked to Israel, especially in the arms industry, Cambridge announced in July that it would work with student protesters in a dedicated task force.

The task force, made up of student activists, would form part of a working group, a university statement said, which would “be expected to make recommendations to […] meetings of the relevant governance committees that oversee policies in relation to research, investments and partnerships”.

Despite its affiliation with extremist positions, CFP hosts events in collaboration with other activist groups in official buildings of the university, such as a ‘Lebanon Teach In’ at St John’s College earlier in October.

In March, Palestine Action, another activist group, was behind the vandalism of a painting of Lord Arthur Balfour in Trinity College Cambridge.

Claiming credit for the stunt on social media, which involved the slashing and spray-painting of the portrait, the protest group said the Balfour declaration “began the ethnic cleansing of Palestine”.