MIT Neuroscientist Put On Notice After Disturbing Anti-Israel Remarks
*Editor's Note (Nov. 27, 2024): This article has been updated to reflect uncertainty regarding whether Mr. Aqrabawi has been fired from his position at MIT. As of this writing, neither Mr. Aqrabawi nor MIT has responded to requests for comment.
A neuroscientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has been put on notice after accusing Israelis of “organ harvesting” and arguing from his popular X account that “Zionism is a mental illness.”
The postdoctoral researcher — Afif Aqrabawi, who identifies as a Palestinian-Feminist from Canada — announced on X over the weekend that he is no longer welcome at the elite institution.
“Yesterday during a lab meeting, my mentor informed me that I may no longer progress in my career due to my so-called 'infamy.' I was told that I was to blame for the challenges I've been facing in publishing my work—that my 'negative' political activism might be provoking the particularly unusual hostility of peer reviewers,” he explained on X.
So what did this negative political activism consist of?
On March 8, 2024, the House Committee on Education and the Workforce cited Aqrabawi’s tweets as examples of anti-Semitism at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in a letter sent to senior MIT officials.
“Zionists not only steal our lands, food, and culture, but our dead bodies as well for organ harvesting. I feel like I’ve seen this movie before.. sounds like some crazy horror film, no?” wrote Afif Aqrabawi on X last year, perpetuating the myth that Jews harvest organs.
“‘[D]ear ZioNazis of Israel, particularly those supporting this genocide, I hope you never find peace and comfort in life... You are all barbaric lunatics... Yes, this is hateful language” he said, also arguing that Zionism is a “mental illness.”
The report also cites his tweet saying Israelis “bark loudly but are the weakest among us.”
“It’s incredible how Western governments will gaslight their own populations to support Nazism, disguised as Israeli self-defense,” he has publicly tweeted, later characterizing the IDF troops as perpetrators of “a holocaust.”
“Nazism. This is the behavior of Nazis. There’s no ambiguity and I refuse to censor the reality of it,” the postdoc has also said.
At MIT, a survey of 75 Jewish students found that 59 percent had experienced antisemitism on campus since October 7, and 73 percent did not feel comfortable being publicly Jewish, Israeli, or supportive of Israel on MIT's campus.
Further, 70 percent had changed their behavior (such as no longer wearing a kippah or Star of David), according to the letter sent to MIT by Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-NC).
After that report implicated Aqrabawi as one of the main instigators of the school’s antisemitic climate — Aqrabawi claimed the government officials had “generously exploited my tweets (sic) to make their case.”
“My words are dangerous because they may alert a distracted American public to the parasites [Israelis] using their country as a host species,” he tweeted.
“These US congress members are Israeli bootlickers. They have the time and resources to keep their eyes on my tweets when they should be serving the American people and governing their failing country,” he continued.
“Lastly, I want to make it clear that Chairwoman Virginia Foxx, who is Catholic, is a treasonous Zionist tool, a genocide enabler, and a disgusting shit stain of a human. Quote that next time,” Aqrabawi said when he tweeted about the situation.
This is an ongoing exclusive story. Please check back for further updates. MIT has not yet responded to a request for comment.
Toni Airaksinen (@Toni_Airaksinen on X) is a journalist living in Delray Beach, Florida. If you want to stay on top of news regarding college antisemitism, please follow her on Substack, Twitter or Instagram.
