Protester faces hate crime charges for allegedly throwing rocks at Jewish students

A Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) protester is facing hate crime charges for allegedly assaulting Jewish students.

The incident was said to have taken place at the Hillel Centre at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus.

Sayed A. Quraishi, 23, will be charged with violent hate crime for reportedly throwing rocks at the students during the SJP protest at the campus on 18th April.

Protesters said that they were responding to the actions of the Israeli police at the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in Jerusalem a few days earlier.

Mr Quraishi faces a penalty of up to five years in prison.

According to the University’s campus police team, about 75 protestors gathered outside the Hillel centre and gave speeches, while Jewish students and Hillel staff staged a counter-protest nearby.

It is reported that there is video footage of Mr Qaraishi throwing a stone at the counter-protestors.

The Hillel’s Executive Director, Erez Cohen, said that “When people come to the Jewish centre to yell against Israel, they’re creating an equation between any Jewish person and the State of Israel. That’s singling out an entire community based on a country that’s miles away.”

According to the International Definition of Antisemitism, “Holding Jews collectively responsible for actions of the State of Israel” is an example of antisemitism.

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