'Didn't even see statement,' Harvard student group board member resigns over communique blaming Israel for Hamas attacks

Israel-Hamas war updates: A board member of one of the Harvard student groups that signed the controversial communique that solely blamed Israel for the dastardly attacks carried out by Hamas, said that she has resigned from her post. 

The statement was released on Sunday evening and said that the devastation unleashed by Hamas in Israel "did not occur in a vacuum". "The apartheid regime is the only one to blame," the statement read. It also noted that violence by Israel in the form of land seizures, airstrikes, detentions, and targeted killings has impacted every aspect of the lives of Palestinians from the last 75 years. 

She called the controversial statement "egregious" and claimed the student group removed its name from the list. The student also said that she did not read the statement before her group signed on it due to the lack of "a formal process" for approval.

"I am sorry for the pain this caused. My organisation did not have a formal process and I didn't even see the statement until we had signed on," she said in a post on X formerly known as Twitter. 

She further claimed that she prevented another student group from signing the statement, while adding that is not congruent with her values and that her heart is with those impacted due to the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. 

The Harvard student also added that some of her fellow students are also in this situation and that she was not the only student group board member who has stepped down.

The student's response comes almost two days after the contentious statement on Israel by Harvard was widely condemned on social media. Billionaire and Harvard alumni Bill Ackman demanded that the list of Harvard students who signed the statement backing Hamas should be made public so that their views are known. 

Former US Treasury Secretary and Harvard alumni Larry Summers attacked Harvard over its lack of response to student groups that have blamed Israel for the surprise attacks by Hamas. "The silence from Harvard's leadership, so far, coupled with a vocal and widely reported student group's statement blaming Israel solely, has allowed Harvard to appear at best neutral towards acts of terror against the Jewish state of Israel," Summers said in his post on X. 

Israel-Palestine war updates

Israel announced that its army has recaptured Gaza border areas from Hamas terrorists, where many killings and abductions have taken place since Saturday. US President Joe Biden called the attacks by Hamas "an act of sheer evil" and said that the US is ready to move in additional assets.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is also expected to visit Israel on Thursday to show "solidarity and support". Blinken will meet top Israeli officials and "reaffirm US solidarity with the government and people of Israel," according to White House. 

He will also discuss measures to boost Israel's security and reiterate the US' support for Israel's right to defend itself. Blinken is also scheduled to visit Jordan on Friday. Meanwhile, more than 3,000 people on both sides have lost their lives so far as a result of the attacks by Hamas and retaliatory action taken by Israel. 

Also Read: Israel-Hamas war: Indian military leadership studying Hamas attacks as death count crosses 3,000

Also Read: ‘Act of sheer evil’: US President Joe Biden condemns Hamas attack; reiterates support for Israel