Oct. 7 marked a year since Hamas militants invaded Israel, leaving almost 1,200 dead and taking 250 people hostage in an unprecedented attack. Now, a year later, the ripple effects of the ensuing war, destruction, and hatred are being felt around the world — including at the University of Iowa.
Since the attack, over 40,000 Palestinians have died in Gaza. Lebanon’s Health Minister said on Oct. 3 that over 2,000 Lebanese people have died, with numbers expected to increase amid Israel’s latest offensive into the region.
ABC News reports 70 percent of schools have been damaged or destroyed in Gaza. Famine overtook much of the strip from December to May, leaving many to starve to death, according to the United Nations. Hospitals were bombed, and the devastation was catastrophic.
In May, the International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes. Netanyahu has remained unwavering on the country’s warpath despite dozens of calls and negotiations orchestrated by the U.S. for a ceasefire.
“If we have to stand alone, we will stand alone. If we need to, we will fight with our fingernails. But we have much more than fingernails,” Netanyahu said in a statement on May 9, just days before Israel’s Independence Day.
Despite its calls for a ceasefire, the U.S. has continued to support Israel by sending weapons and aid to the country over the last year.
The war has sparked countless protests across the U.S. In the spring, protesters at Columbia University made headlines after they encamped on campus for two weeks. The protest ended with a group taking over Hamilton Hall and police dispersing the demonstration.
The UI has seen dozens of protests on its own campus.
Every Friday since the war began, people have gathered to protest on the UI’s Pentacrest. In December, nine pro-Palestine protesters chained themselves to the doors of Kinnick Stadium, leading to their arrest.
On May 6, protesters attempted to encamp on Hubbard Park. However, the attempt was quickly squashed by both campus and local authorities.
Protesters stood outside the UI Law School commencement in May and then marched to the Pentacrest. They also spent three consecutive days on the Pentacrest to show solidarity for Palestine.
Over the summer, protesters attended the Iowa Board of Regents meeting in Iowa City, where they called for the UI to divest from Israel.
Several protests have happened at political events — on both sides of the aisle. Over 200 protesters gathered in April to protest U.S. Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks,’ R-Iowa, campaign reception with U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson speaking at the Marriott hotel.
Within the last two weeks, protesters gathered in neighboring Solon to protest Christina Bohannan — Miller-Meeks’ political rival.
A common link throughout these protests is the call for defunding Israel for its “genocide” of the Palestinian people.
“For as long as we allow our institutions to not only be complicit but participate in genocide and ethnic cleansing, we will never reach these goals,” Clara Reynen, local pro-Palestinian activist, said at the June Board of Regents meeting. “I am here because we must do better. We must end all partnerships with Israeli universities and companies that profit from the state of Israel.”
Pro-Israel groups on campus have said that people do not fully understand the conflict and should educate themselves. UI student and chair of the Young Americans for Freedom Jasmyn Jordan has set up numerous tabling events and chalking activities in support of Israel.
Young Americans for Freedom is a conservative group on campus that has hosted several conservative speakers, including Matt Walsh and Chloe Cole. On Oct. 7, the organization brought Jewish podcaster Ian Haworth to speak about the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Jordan said Israel has a right to the land it is on and that Israel is defending itself. She said most pro-Palestinian protesters do not know the full story. She also encouraged free speech, saying many of her group’s signs and chalk drawings have been defaced over the last year.
“It’s absolutely disturbing that there are students like that on our campus that are willing to be so hateful and that are willing to violate First Amendment rights,” Jordan said.
There have been several counter-demonstrations for Israel on campus. On Saturday, almost 100 pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on the Pentacrest for International Day of Action for Palestine. About 10 pro-Israel protesters gathered a counter-demonstration on the Pentacrest.
UI student Itai Ben-Shahar led this counter-protest. He said he lived in Israel during the seventh grade, and people do not understand the full nature of the conflict, which is something he hopes more people will spend time doing.
RELATED: One hundred pro-Palestine protesters gather nearly one year after Oct. 7 attack
“It’s sad to see all these people who think that they know everything, and they refuse to do their own research,” Ben-Shahar said during the protest. “They’re willfully ignorant, which is the worst.”
Ben-Shahar said as an Israeli person, he has not noticed direct anti-semitism at the UI. He did say that when he gets involved with protests, it has been more likely for him to get into conflict with people about his beliefs.
First-year UI student and pro-Palestine protester Molly McCants said she wished more people would learn about the conflict and the deaths happening in the Middle East.
“I feel like it would be awesome if there was more talk about it because I think a lot of people on campus would support this,” McCants said. “I want to make sure I’m out here each Friday from now on.”
All of this conflict across the country has impacted public opinion on the amount of discrimination toward Jewish and Muslim individuals.
A study by the Pew Research Center released in April 2024 reports a rise in adults saying both Jewish people and Muslims face increasing levels of discrimination, with the percentage of Jewish individuals doubling since 2021.
Elizabeth Heineman, co-director of the Jewish Studies Network and UI professor of History, said that while she has not noticed a definite increase in antisemitism at Iowa, she understands how it could be increasing across the country.
She said there are footholds for antisemitism in society, and it has been that way for generations. She said that the Israel-Hamas war is often misinterpreted as a religious war when it is really a geopolitical conflict.
“This is often posed as a religious conflict between Islam and Judaism, and it really needs to be understood as a geopolitical conflict in which the majority population of one group is Muslim, and the majority population of another group is Jewish,” Heineman said.
She said people can forget that there is a range of opinions in Israel and Arab states, and people should avoid assuming an entire group of people wants to destroy the other because it can lead to dehumanization and hate.
At the UI, she said the conflict has stoked fears among people.
“It has definitely created among some people, on both sides, some very real fears, and part of this has to do with things that are happening on campus. And part of this has to do with things that people read, either in the mainstream media or social media,” Heineman said.
Despite these fears, Heineman said she has noticed an increase in students wanting to learn about these topics. As an educator, she thinks spreading knowledge is vital.
As for the future, Heineman is stumped on what the future may hold for this conflict. Israel is positioning itself for a wider war in the Middle East, and an end to the fighting is getting farther out of sight.
“I just have very real fears about where this is all going to go, and a lot of people are going to suffer very badly,” Heineman said.