A crowd flies the Palestinian flag during the FIERY drag race
A reckless takeover of more than 100 vehicles erupted in Maspeth, Queens, early Saturday morning, when a crowd waving Palestinian flags lit bonfires and jumped on an NYPD patrol car, smashing its window.
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Rutgers University pulled the plug on a planned graduation speech after criticism of Israel caused a backlash, prompting the school to withdraw the course.
The move came after Rami Elghandour, CEO of biotech company Arcellx and a university student, used his social media account to accuse Israel of committing war crimes and provide other anti-Israel messages.
Elghandour also served as executive producer of a documentary about a Palestinian girl who was killed by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
He was scheduled to speak at a May 15 convocation at the School of Engineering before the decision was reversed, according to an Associated Press report.
RUTGERS STUDENTS SLAM BIDEN ADMIN FOR PUSHING RUTGERS ‘INTO RELEASE’ FOR MEDIATION
The Rutgers Scarlet Knights logo is painted on the concrete at SHI Stadium before a game against the Oregon Ducks in Piscataway, NJ, on Oct. 18, 2025. (Isaiah Vazquez/Getty Images)
A Rutgers spokesperson said in a statement to the AP that the university changed the course after learning that “some graduating students will not be attending their graduation ceremony due to concerns about the guest speaker’s social media presence.”
However, the spokesperson of the department refused to reveal which vacancies led to this decision being taken.
No one in contact with Rutgers or Elghandour immediately responded to Fox News Digital’s request for comment.
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN OFFICIAL DEI FIRED AFTER ALLEGED COMMENTS: REPORT
Demonstrators attend a pro-Palestine demonstration in Leipzig, Germany, on Jan. 17. (Christian Mang/Reuters)
In a statement sent to The Guardian newspaper, a university spokesperson said, “This decision ultimately focuses on our engineering students and respects the spirit of the event to ensure that no student feels forced to choose between their beliefs and the convocation ceremony.”
During his interview with the institute, Elghandour said he found it “strange” that the university is rejecting him for the same humanitarian views as his “supporter”.
Elghandour’s cancellation is the latest example of anti-Israel sentiment stirring controversy on college campuses.
NYU SUSPENDS DIPLOMA OF ANTI-ISRAEL STUDENT WHO RUINED GAZA WAR AS ‘GENOCIDE’ DURING COMMENCEMENT SPEECH.
Rutgers University students set up a Gaza solidarity camp on the Newark campus in Newark, NJ, on May 21, 2024. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu)
Another recent example comes from the University of Michigan, where a professor congratulated Gaza protesters during a graduation speech.
The university’s president later apologized for the incident, saying the sentiments expressed in the speech were “painful and insensitive to many members of our community.”
“We regret the pain this has caused on a day of celebration and achievement. For this, the university apologizes,” he added, according to a report by the Times of Israel.
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The Associated Press contributed to this report.
