Stanford University submits photo of encampment protester wearing Hamas headband to FBI
The image shows a male sitting at a table on his phone while wearing a green headband that looks very similar to the type worn by Hamas terrorist fighters
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Officials at Stanford University submitted a photo of someone on campus wearing a green headband worn by Hamas terrorist fighters to the FBI as the school struggles to reign in anti-Israel protesters camping overnight on school property.
Like at other universities across the country, anti-Israel students at Stanford have created an encampment in the White Plaza portion of the northern California college campus to protest Israel's military offensive in the Gaza Strip.
A photo of someone at the encampment wearing a green headband, a face covering and glasses eventually came to the attention of school administrators.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"We have received many expressions of concern about a photo circulating on social media of an individual on White Plaza who appeared to be wearing a green headband similar to those worn by members of Hamas," the school said in a Wednesday statement. "We find this deeply disturbing, as Hamas is designated a terrorist organization by the United States government. We have not been able to identify the individual but have forwarded the photo to the FBI."
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Palestinian Hamas terrorists are seen during a military show in the Bani Suheila district on July 20, 2017, in Gaza City, Gaza. A protester at Stanford University with a headband similar to the one worn by Hamas members was seen on an image submitted to the FBI. (Chris McGrath/Getty Images)
A university spokesperson declined to comment on the matter to Fox News Digital.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Fox News Digital has reached out to the FBI.
In a Monday message, Stanford President Richard Saller and Provost Jenny Martinez said the student encampment violates polices that prohibit overnight camping on campus. The university has submitted the names of students caught violating campus policies to the Office of Community Standards (OCS) for disciplinary proceedings, they said.
Protest organizers have decried the university's response to the student protests.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Stanford is actively discriminating against Palestinian, Arab, Muslim, and anti-Zionist Jewish students using their internal disciplinary process," they wrote on social media.
A letter dated Monday to school administrators called on Stanford to take a harder stance on antisemitic behavior by following the lead of other schools like Columbia University to remove the protesters.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Stanford University in Stanford, California on Sept. 14, 2023. (David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"Other colleges across the country have begun arresting and disciplining malicious student and non-student agitators, setting an important precedent," the letter said. "We, Jews and non-Jews alike, call on Stanford to follow suit."
The letter, authored by Jewish students on campus and signed by more than 28,000 people, linked to the photo sent to the FBI.
"Individuals dressed openly as members of a terrorist organization is unacceptable and must be dealt with swiftly and harshly," the authors wrote. "Not doing so sets a dangerous standard, as no citizen should have to worry about distinguishing between individuals merely dressed as terrorists and true terrorists who seek to deal us serious bodily harm."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Other universities have seen mass arrests as well as clashes between anti-Israel and pro-Israel supporters. The University of California, Los Angeles canceled classes on Wednesday after protesters at dueling rallies fought one another overnight.