New NUS president posted Islamic chant threatening ‘Jews’ and sympathised with Hamas
Shaima Dallali was confirmed as the next NUS leader following a vote at the student body's annual conference in Liverpool on Monday.
Lee Harpin is the Jewish News's political editor
![Former president of NUS, Shaima Dallali [Twitter].](https://static.jewishnews.co.uk/jewishnews/uploads/2022/03/93EM5K4U_400x400.jpg "Former president of NUS, Shaima Dallali [Twitter].")
The National Union of Students has voted for a new president who only last week had to apologise for a historic tweet in which she posted the words of an infamous Islamic chant threatening “Jews” with an attack by “the army of Muhammed.”
Shaima Dallali was confirmed as the next NUS leader following a vote at the student body’s annual conference in Liverpool on Monday.
The former City University Students Union president will replace current NUS leader Larissa Kennedy later this year.
The Union of Jewish Students reacted to Dallali’s election by issuing a statement urging her to “come to the table” to discuss concerns over her “extremely challenging views” for Jewish students.
Last week Jewish News revealed how Dallali had in 2012 posted an inflammotory tweet stating:”“Khaybar Khaybar, ya yahud, Jaish Muhammad, sa yahud.”
In Islamic tradition, the chant – which means, “Jews, remember Khaybar, the army of Muhammad is returning” – is used as a battle cry when attacking Jews or Israelis.
It refers to the Muslim massacre of the Jews of the town of Khaybar in north western Arabia in 628 CE.
In a statement issued last week Dallali said: “Earlier today I was made aware of a tweet I posted 10 years ago.
“During Israel’s assault on Gaza I referenced the battle of Khaybar in which Jewish and Muslim armies fought. I was wrong to see the Palestine conflict as one between Muslims and Jews.
“The reference made as a teenager was unacceptable and I sincerely and unreservedly apologise.”
Further evidence shown to Jewish News confirms that other deleted tweets posts by the new NUS leader included one from November 2020 in which she wrote that Jeremy Corbyn “should never have been suspended” from Labour “in the first place.”
It referred to Corbyn suspension after he claimed the EHRC report into antisemitism had exaggerated the extent of the problem for political reasons.
Other deleted tweets made by the new NUS leader included statements supportive of the Islamic terror organisation Hamas.
In a statement released on Monday evening the Union of Jewish Students said: “The NUS delegates have voted in Shaima Dallali as the next NUS president. Jewish students have spoken to us and raised their concerns over much of the messaging Dallali has put out on her social media in the past – attacking the Jewish community, attacking UJS, and supporting speakers with extremely challenging views.
“We hope that she will come to the table, work with UJS and understand how to support Jewish students.
“There have been many bridges broken between NUS and Jewish students over the past few weeks, and we call on Shaima and her team to join us in rebuilding those bridges to ensure that NUS becomes a space where Jewish students once more feel welcomed in rather than sidelined and excluded.”
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
