Shaima Dallali removed as NUS President following antisemitism investigation prompted by outrage from CAA and others
Shaima Dallali, the President of the National Union of Students (NUS), has been removed from her position amidst investigations into her conduct following allegations of antisemitism.
In a letter to Campaign Against Antisemitism, NUS confirmed that its investigation — which is still ongoing — had “found that significant breaches of NUS’ policies have taken place” and that consequently “we have terminated the President’s contract.”
The letter continued: “We are sorry for the harm that has been caused and we hope to rebuild the NUS in an inclusive way – fighting for all students as we have done for the past 100 years.”
It came after Ms Dallali last month became the first President in the Union’s 100-year history to have been suspended. The decision to remove Ms Dallali is subject to appeal.
The removal follows an internal investigation conducted by NUS, while an independent investigation is underway, led by Rebecca Tuck KC. Campaign Against Antisemitism has provided input into the latter investigation.
The investigations arose following a string of controversies surrounding the NUS and its leadership, and were announced after Robert Halfon MP wrote together with Campaign Against Antisemitism to the Charity Commission calling for an investigation into the Union’s charitable arm. The full dossier on NUS, produced by Campaign Against Antisemitism, can be read here. In addition, over twenty former NUS Presidents wrote a letter expressing their “serious concerns about antisemitism”, and another letter, organised by the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and signed by over 1,000 Jewish students and allies, called for NUS to launch an independent investigation.
There have been numerous controversies involving NUS this year. In one recent scandal, the rapper Kareem Dennis, known as Lowkey, was due to headline NUS’s centenary conference last month. After initially dismissing the concerns of Jewish students, who pointed out the rapper’s inflammatory record, the union came under media scrutiny and eventually Mr Dennis withdrew from the event. As the scandal erupted, Robert Halfon MP excoriated NUS for failing to send a representative to attend a hearing held by the Education Select Committee, which he chairs.
This scandal was immediately followed by the election of Shaima Dallali as NUS’s new President, despite her history of antisemitic tweets and other inflammatory social media posts.
Ms Dallali was forced to apologise for tweeting the words of an antisemitic chant. In 2012, during an escalation of tensions between Israel and the antisemitic genocidal terrorist group Hamas, Ms Dallali tweeted the words “Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
Translated into English, this chant means “Jews, remember the battle of Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning.” It is a classic Arabic battle cry referencing the massacre and expulsion of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in northwestern Arabia, now Saudi Arabia, in the year 628 CE.
Ms Dallali issued a statement on 23rd March, saying: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted ten years ago. During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews. The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
It also came to light that Ms Dallali’s output on Twitter also included other inflammatory messages, including one last May allegedly saying that “organisations like UJS [the Union of Jewish Students] have a history of bullying pro-Palestine sabbs [sabbatical officers] and activists. You speak one word of solidarity and they’re after you. UJS and their likes need to be called out.”
Another alleged tweet from 2018 read: “So your special forces invade the Gaza Strip, attempt to kidnap a Hamas commander, kill him and others. Then cry about Hamas being the terrorists. Makes perfect sense. #GazaUnderAttack.” Hamas is an antisemitic genocidal terrorist organisation that is proscribed in the UK.
Binyomin Gilbert, Programme Manager at Campaign Against Antisemitism, said: “The removal of Shaima Dallali as NUS President is an encouraging first step, and may represent the first acknowledgement by NUS of how dreadful its relations with Jewish students have become.
“Nobody with a history of expressing antisemitic sentiments has a place in student leadership, and while her removal is certainly the right decision, the culture in NUS and student politics that allowed somebody like Ms Dallali to rise so high must still be addressed.
“This is hardly the first time that we have had to raise concerns about antisemitism at the top of NUS. That is why Rebecca Tuck KC’s investigation into antisemitism in NUS more widely, to which we have contributed, is so important.”
If any students are concerned about antisemitism on campus or need assistance, they can call us on 0330 822 0321, or e-mail [email protected]
