Vandalism raises specter of renewed anti-Israel protests that swept college campuses during spring semester
The Campus Protest Season Opens
It's fall, so class begins alongside Gaza demonstrators.
Just hours after the passing of the one-year anniversary of the Oct. 7 massacre in Israel, vandals smashed windows on the campus of Harvard and poured red paint on the school's namesake statue in "an act of solidarity with the Palestinian resistance," according to an online message.
The online group "Unity of Fields," which publishes defacement videos from across the country, posted a video of Tuesday's vandalism. The video included the caption: "Bring the war home."
"In the early hours of 10/8, autonomous actors at Harvard smashed windows of the main administrative building and vandalized the John Harvard statue in an act of solidarity with the Palestinian resistance," read a message accompanying the video. "We are committed to bringing the war home and answering the call to open up a new front here in the belly of the beast."
The Harvard University Police Department told Fox News Digital that the incident is under investigation.
The John Harvard statue was vandalized with red paint on Oct. 8, 2024, in an act of 'Palestinian resistance.' (Addison Y. Liu/The Harvard Crimson)
"It is the longstanding policy of the Harvard University Police Department to not comment on open investigations," a department spokesman said.
Unity of Fields also published photos showing the campus of UMass Amherst defaced with pro-Palestinian graffiti.
An anonymous submission posted by the group accused UMass Amherst of being "complicit in genocide through its partnerships with Raytheon and other war profiteers."
Graffiti on the campus of UMass Amherst targeting Raytheon. (Submitted to Unity of Fields)
"At their engineering career fair, both Raytheon and General Dynamics were present. Both are weapons manufacturers that are heavily complicit in genocide. UMass Foundation is also invested into several war profiteering companies, which means our tuition money goes directly to genocide," the message read.
The anonymous message warned readers to expect more "autonomous actions at UMass Amherst."
"We will not rest until war profiteers are gone, and Palestine is fully liberated," the message concluded.
The campus of UMass Amherst defaced with pro-Palestinian graffiti. (Submitted to Unity of Fields)
A spokesperson for UMass Amherst told Fox News Digital that the university "is aware of incidents that are being investigated by UMass Police."
"Beyond that, we do not comment on investigations," the spokesperson said.
It's unclear what affiliation, if any, the perpetrators had with either Harvard or UMass Amhest.
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Both incidents raise the specter of renewed anti-Israel protests that swept college campuses during the spring semester. The National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) is orchestrating a nationwide "Week of Rage" on campuses beginning on the Oct. 7 anniversary.
Anti-Israel protesters demonstrate in NYC on Oct. 5, 2024, ahead of the anniversary of the Oct. 7 Hamas attack. (Adam Gray for Fox News Digital)
Monday marked one year since Hamas terrorists stormed into Israel, killing nearly 1,200 people and taking hundreds more hostage. Israel responded by waging a war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, where the fighting has claimed the lives of an estimated 41,000 Palestinians and displaced nearly 2 million people.
The conflict has spread in the region, with Israel waging a battle against Hezbollah terrorists in Lebanon, facing escalating threats from Yemen's Houthi rebels, and escalating tensions with Iran.
Bradford Betz is a Fox News Digital breaking reporter covering crime, political issues, and much more.
