The Hebrew University announced on Tuesday that professor Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, who denied the Oct. 7 atrocities committed by Hamas, will not return to her teaching position at the school and will instead retire on Oct. 1.
The university suspended Shalhoub-Kevorkian, holder of the Lawrence D. Biele Chair in Law at the main Mount Scopus campus, on March 12 after she accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza.
The Haifa-born Arab-Israeli has also called the “Zionist entity,” i.e. Israel, “criminal” and a “killing machine” and said Israel lied about rapes and Jewish babies being killed on Oct. 7.
Although the university in the letter announcing her suspension stated that it “rejects all of her distorted statements with disgust,” it reinstated her on March 27.
The decision to allow her to resume teaching was taken following a meeting with the rector of the university, professor Tamir Sheafer.
Shalhoub-Kevorkian claimed in the meeting that “as a critical feminist researcher she believes all victims and does not doubt their words, and that she does not deny the fact that on Oct. 7 there were cases of rape in the south [of Israel].”
However, continued protests over Shalhoub-Kevorkian’s reinstatement led the university to plead with her to step down, which she eventually did.
Btsalmo, a pro-Zionist student group, filed a complaint with the university’s disciplinary committee, describing the remarks as particularly outrageous given many students, or their families, were personally affected by Oct. 7.
Although the school rejected the complaint, Btsalmo CEO Shai Glick praised the school for urging Shalhoub-Kevorkian’s departure.
“We congratulate the university for asking her not to continue teaching there. At the same time, we, together with other students, will resubmit the complaint and make sure that it goes up to the disciplinary committee and that all compensatory funds will be taken from her,” he said.
“Whoever harms IDF soldiers and incites against them, whoever harms university students, should not teach in the Israeli academy,” he said.
