The Guardian has again whitewashed the antisemitism of the (now sacked) National Union of Students (NUS) President, Shaima Dallali. The article (“NUS president ousted over antisemitism allegations”, Nov. 2), by Education Editor Richard Adams, reports on news that Dallali was dismissed from her role following an independent investigation into antisemitism claims against her and the student body.
Dallali’s removal is reportedly the first dismissal of an NUS leader in its 100 year history.
The inquiry – whose report has not yet been made public – found “significant breaches” of the organisation’s policies. However, the Guardian reporter seriously downplayed the accusations, by framing them as follows:
The allegations of misconduct are thought to centre around past comments by Shaima Dallali, in some cases dating back 10 years before her election as NUS president in March this year.
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After Dallali’s election the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) objected to comments she is alleged to have made, including a tweet posted in 2012 that read: “Khaybar Khaybar O Jews … Muhammad’s army will return Gaza,” referencing a historical massacre. Dallali later apologised for the tweet.
However, as reported by other media outlets, that “Khaybar” incident represents only one of the documented antisemitic incidents, most of which are far more recent.
Other incidents submitted to the inquiry include:
- Statements she made in support of Hamas in May 2021, with the claim “resistance with weapons is a right”.
- A video she posted of anti-Israel protesters calling for an intifada, while branding a critic of Hamas a “dirty Zionist”.
- A 2018 article she wrote praising extremist Muslim cleric Yusuf al-Qaradawi. (Al-Qaradawi has previously claimed the Holocaust as “divine punishment” of the Jews, among other antisemitic statements.)
- A statement she made in 2020 that she was fundraising for the extremist group CAGE.
- A tweet showing her approval of a series screened by Al Jazeera which aired claims there is a hierarchy of racism in Labour, with antisemitism given preference.
- Finally, see this twitter thread on Dallali’s involvement with London protests that included extremist rhetoric.
In May and June of 2022, we posted about similar omissions by Guardian reporters concerning allegations of antisemitism against Dallali.
In contrast to the Guardian, articles in The Telegraph and The Times about Dallali’s dismissal included more – and more recent – examples of Dallali’s racism and support for terror.
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Adam Levick’s London talk on Critical Race Theory and antisemitism
Needless to say, the BBC follows the Guardian in whitewashing her:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-63477692