UCLA Campus Protest Screens Play Loop of Hamas Attacks

As pro-Palestinian protests broke out on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) over the last week—following similar demonstrations at elite colleges across the U.S.—an anonymous group erected large video screens facing the protesters, looping footage from the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel that triggered the current war in Gaza.

Positioned strategically near Royce Hall, close to the eastern entrance of the campus where the main pro-Palestinian encampment has been staging, the screens display a short video titled 'This is Hamas'. The graphic footage depicts Hamas' assault, including footage of a Hamas gunman bragging to his parents on the phone that he "killed ten" Jews with his bare hands.

A post on X, formerly Twitter, by the user @persianjewess, published Monday and viewed 3.3 million times, showed the screens in action, with some pro-Israel users expressing their support and suggesting similar screens be put up at other U.S. campuses currently embroiled in tense protests.

"Anyone know how we can do the same brilliant idea in NYU/Columbia?" wrote one.

Some social media users suggested that the screens were part of a larger pro-Israel campus rally organized by an anonymous Persian Jewish group and supported by a student named Nathan Mo. According to a GoFundMe organized by someone with the same name, the campaign has already raised more than $90,000 — including a $5,000 donation from Jerry Seinfeld's wife, Jessica. That far exceeds its initial fundraising goal of $26,000.

Newsweek reached out to Mo via GoFundMe on Tuesday but did not immediately receive a response.

'Physical Altercations'

Last week at UCLA, clashes erupted among protesters during dueling pro-Palestinian, pro-Israel demonstrations. On Sunday, UCLA's Harriet Center for Social Justice arranged a demonstration to advocate for students' rights to protest, while the group Stand in Support of Jewish Students collaborated with the Israeli-American Council to hold a rally denouncing hatred and antisemitism on campus.

Protesters from both sides shoved one another and shouted slogans and insults. A group of demonstrators "breached a barrier that the university had established separating two groups of protesters on our campus, resulting in physical altercations," Mary Osako, vice chancellor of UCLA strategic communications, said in a statement on Sunday.

The pro-Palestinian demonstrations spread to universities across the U.S. following the arrests of protesters who set up a "Gaza Solidarity Encampment" at Columbia University in New York City on April 18. Over the last two weeks, hundreds of protesters have been arrested after erecting similar encampments on campuses across the country, demanding their universities divest from companies supporting Israel, and a permanent ceasefire to end the war.

On October 7, 2023, Hamas militants launched a surprise attack on southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking several hundred more back into Gaza as hostages. In response, the Israeli military initiated a major air and ground operation in Gaza that has killed more than 34,000 people, according to the territory's Hamas-controlled health ministry.