Clark University President John Bassett fails in his efforts to cancel a lecture by Norman Finkelstein on the Israeli massacre of Gazans.
Basset sparked student fury earlier this month after he nixed the appearance of Finkelstein -- an outspoken critic of Israeli policies toward the Palestinians -- for fear that any support would undermine a university-sponsored conference on the Holocaust.
The Students for Palestinian Rights and other organizations responded by circulating petitions and organizing a protest rally in criticism of what they believed to be a violation of the right of freedom of speech granted under the First Amendment.
The American Civil Liberties Union also wrote a letter Basset, reprimanding him for infringing upon academic freedom.
In the face of the angry outburst, Basset revoked the cancellation and rescheduled Finkelstein's appearance for Monday, after the conference more at Press TV
Until now, the besieged Gaza Strip has stayed free of the novel coronavirus spreading across the world. As the Gaza Strip has been under a stringent Israeli-led blockade for nearly 13 years, the spread of the coronavirus - officially known as COVID-19 - has become the topic of discussion for many Palestinians, with some joking that the blockade was preventing them from being exposed.But as authorities in the coastal Palestinian enclave gear up to contain any potential outbreak, serious questions have arisen about the risks and implications of such a scenario. But given its already difficult humanitarian situation and high population density, an outbreak in the Gaza Strip could prove to be catastrophic, health officials have warned. "If the virus enters Gaza and spreads, it will get out of hand," Gaza Ministry of Health spokesperson Majdi Thuhair told Middle East Eye, as he explained that a severe shortage of resources and personnel would make it near impossible
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