Harvard Chabad condemned Harvard’s yearbook for having a page with a picture titled “October – war breaks out in Gaza,” calling it “Holocaust-like denial,” late Saturday night on X/Twitter.
The local Chabad compared it to saying that war broke out in Afghanistan on September 11.
“It must be fake history that the genocidal attack on the Jewish people took place, leading to the greatest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust,” Chabad commented ironically.
Published in the Harvard Yearbook of 2025: Holocaust-like Denial“October [7] 2023: War Breaks Out in Gaza.”It must be fake history that the genocidal attack on the Jewish people took place, leading to the greatest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust.These Harvard students,… pic.twitter.com/A64SqR3XnA
— Harvard Chabad (@HarvardChabad) May 25, 2025
Alexander “Shabbos” Kestenbaum, a Harvard alumnus and Jewish activist known for his lawsuit against the university, also commented on the yearbook page.
“I urge all employers: If you are going to hire Harvard graduates from 2024-2028, please ask them what they were doing on campus the last two years,” he posted.
“Go through their social media. If they celebrated the abduction of 12 American citizens and the murder of more than 45, perhaps look elsewhere for employees,” he continued.
In the official Harvard 2025 Yearbook, the largest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust is simply labeled:“October 2023: War Breaks Out in Gaza.”As Harvard Chabad notes, this would be the equivalent of describing 9/11 as "War breaks out in Afghanistan."I urge all employers:… pic.twitter.com/jgtx5NNaMq
— Shabbos Kestenbaum (@ShabbosK) May 25, 2025
This statement was posted after Kestenbaum’s lawsuit over alleged antisemitism was settled in a Boston federal court earlier in the month.
The settlement came four months after Harvard promised additional protections for Jewish students as it resolved two lawsuits claiming it was a hotbed of rampant antisemitism.
Jewish students said Harvard tolerated them being maligned as “murderers” and subjected to viral attacks, and they accused the university of hiring professors who promoted anti-Jewish violence and spread antisemitic propaganda.
The Trump administration went so far as to defund Harvard over its ideologies
The US Department of Health and Human Services said on Monday that it was terminating $60 million in federal grants to Harvard University, saying the Ivy League institution had failed to address antisemitic harassment and ethnic discrimination on campus.
Since taking office in January, Republican President Donald Trump has sought to use federal research funding to overhaul US academia, which he says has been gripped by anti-American, Marxist, and “radical Left” ideologies.
Michael Starr and Reuters contributed to this report.