Israeli millionaire Idan Ofer and his spouse, Batia, have resigned from the Kennedy School of Government governing board at Harvard, citing insufficient reactions from school administrators to the recent attacks on Israel by Hamas. The decision was made in the middle of escalating controversy at the university over a statement that a coalition of student organizations produced that was anti-Israel.
An Overview
With a fortune estimated at about $20 billion, Idan Ofer, who ranks 80th on Bloomberg’s billionaire index, has made the decision to resign from his position at the Kennedy School. The Kennedy School is supported financially by a prominent advisory board made up of luminaries in business and philanthropy. The university’s general response to the latest developments in the Israel-Palestine conflict is more significant than the anti-Israel letter when it comes to the Ofers decision.
Motives behind Resignation:
The Ofers revealed their lack of confidence in Harvard’s administration in a statement to CNN, saying, “Unfortunately, our faith in the University’s leadership has been broken, and we cannot in good faith continue to support Harvard and its committees.” The pair made a point of criticizing attempts to hold the Israeli people accountable for the deeds of the acknowledged terrorist group Hamas.
Harvard, according to the Ofer, has failed to demonstrate its support for Israel in the wake of the recent sad events and appears unwilling to acknowledge Hamas as a terrorist organization. Their resignation is a result of their wish for Harvard and other universities to speak out clearly and unequivocally in the face of widespread misinformation.
Harvard’s Reaction:
Regarding the resignation and condemnation from the Ofer, Harvard University has remained silent. Claudine Gay, the president of the university, however, issued a video statement reiterating the school’s opposition to both hate and terrorism. President Gay underlined Harvard’s dedication to freedom of speech and denounced harassment or intimidation on the basis of ideas, while understanding that supporting a range of opinions might be difficult.
Harvard’s controversy:
Ofers’ departure adds to a string of controversy at Harvard, which also included student groups’ anti-Israel stance and public calls for the revelation of names connected to the groups. A “doxing truck” bearing the names and photos of students associated with the declaration went around close to Harvard’s campus, escalating the discussion about responsibility and freedom of speech.
Harvard Foundation does not need these guy millions….but they need to keep their impartiality and intellectual honesty.
What HAMAS did was horrible. Beheading women and children is never justified (IF it did actually happened) the only acceptable way to slaughter children is to bomb them from the air or use drones to blast their whole family and apartment buildings as the Israeli do….or cut their electricity and food and water….soo much more humane….
Fact is there are NO good guys in this conflict. The Israelis want to grab more lands and kick the Arabs/Palestinians out of Palestine and HAMAS want to kill them before they do. All this stuff has been happening since 1948 when Truman was convinced that it was a good idea to allow a Jewish state to be created in lands that belong to other people already.
We should have created a Jewish homeland in Montana or Wyoming where nobody but cows live…..Imagine how wealthy those states would be now….
What an awful statement. Israel didn’t start it.
Israeli army sent many messages “from the airplanes” as you said to ask civilians to evacuate from that places where hamas is. Is it a different approach ???
Jews was living on that land way before Arafat brought an arabs and called them Palestinians.
This is where Moses was taking Jews to get read from slavery behavior and feel finally FREE.
Jews was always smart, self-sufficient and if you would search the names with the highest inventions in this world, gets what???
Einstein, Richard Feynman, Oppenheimer, Haber, Bosch (both from Germany), Rosalind
Franklin ( was working on DNA for six years on it)
and millions more.
If anyone will touch my child, it’s will not hesitate a minute before going and killing attacker.
There is expression in Bible:”who will come with the sword will die from the sword…
It’s also expression:” don’t get person from the dirt, they will never forget and forgive you.”
This is about Mr. and Mrs. Ofers who for years were helping the students of Harvard. Now you don’t need them??? Incredible “appreciation”.
Now ask Hamas to help to Harvard. Good luck with that.
Please Germansmith….The Zionists that returned to the land of
Transjordan in the late 19th and 20th century BOUGHT overpriced desert land from absentee Arab or Ottoman landlords, when little was happening in there. After WW I, under the British Mandate, purchases continued from absentee landlords that were happy to get paid 10 times the value of the land at that time. As the Zionists (mostly socialists or communists, reclaimed small portions of the land for agriculture, neighboring peoples, Arabs, moved in to find employment from the Kibbutzim that were started by Jewish Zionists from multiple mostly European countries. So don’t say, “Jewish state to be created in lands that belong to other people already.” That’s false! So G’smith, tell me when did the Palestinians have a nation in that land. Where were they in 800 BCE when David was King of Israel? Where were they in 132 BCE when Mattathias and his Maccabees revolted and took back the Land of Judea from the Greeks, later losing control it again to the Romans. The land was known as Judea and Samaria then. Who changed the name of the land to Palestine? When? Why? The only “Arabs” then were the people of the Arabian Peninsula, roving tribes of various Bedouin clans who worshipped multiple pre-Islamic gods. Jews and Christians were the most civilized peoples amongst idol worshippers until Mohammad invented Islam in the 6th century CE. Even after the Israeli War of Independence in 1948, there were still no unique Palestinian people. There were Palestinian Christians, Palestinian Jews, Palestinian Muslims. Palestine was, is, a PLACE, not a people. Where are their Arab brothers to settle them and give them citizenship? Like Israel did for the 800,000 Jews. who lived in peace for centuries in Arab majority countries, who were then given a week to get out….but leaving whatever assets they owned behind. The story of the Jews survival…from the most accient of times to today and forever.
t
The story of the Jews survival…from the most ancient of times to today and forever.
Shapiro: The story of the Jews survival…from the most ancient of times to today and forever.
Appreciate much of what you stated ^5
IF IN FACT? Do you actually Doubt these reports? If so WHY? I am not a Jew but believe that Muslim Terrorists are Quite Capable of committing these Atrocities which they have done before!
Excellent! As someone that did part of his education at Harvard I am extremely glad to see the university get called on the carpet! It is time Harvard, Yale, Princeton, and others begin to clean up their act. It is NOT prudent to be positioning themselves in a political position! They are there STRICTLY to educate properly NOT promote and support radical disgusting cultures and ideas!
Harvard needs to be evaluating their professors and students as well. Knowing some of them myself and seeing some of the graduates they have turned out the past ten years including students who currently attend require some serious evaluation.
Harvard and other universities have graduated individuals that clearly DO NOT represent the values and standards these Ivy League universities used to enforce.
In the past, the universities used to care about their reputations. Such an embarassment!
Hopefully, more doners will start pulling their investments, funding, and support from Harvard and the other universities. If the universities start seeing the pocketbooks and support empty, just maybe they’ll look at their failures.
By allowing students that clearly should not be receiving an education in the US whether they have money or not, they spread propaganda, gain sympathisers, spread immoral ideas, and other radicalism among students, including some of the professors throughout their time.
Once students graduate they get fast tracked to corporations, politics, visible roles that impact negatively, or they go overseas and take that knowledge back to be utilized against the United States or allies.
This must stop now!
Thank you very much for your great message.
I completely support your approach to the huge problem in our universities. Professors and administrators should teach a profession, not politics, in this case absolutely wrong one.