On September 21, 2021, Hamas-affiliated security forces reportedly stormed Al-Azhar University – Gaza (AUG) and attacked students, faculty, and staff who were wearing keffiyehs – a black and white scarf associated with Yasser Arafat, which, especially since his death in 2004, has become a national symbol for Palestinian struggle.
Hamas security forces stormed the AUG campus, reportedly attacking and arresting a number of students and faculty who refused demands to take their keffiyehs off. According to the AUG administration, Hamas security forces also attacked AUG security personnel, who attempted to break apart clashes between the security forces and students. The Hamas security forces denied attacking AUG students and staff on the basis of wearing a keffiyeh.
Scholars at Risk is concerned about the use of force and arrests by security forces, in an apparent effort to restrict nonviolent, on-campus expression by students and faculty. Security forces must refrain from restricting or retaliating against nonviolent, expressive activity on campus. In addition to the harm to the immediate victims, the use of force and arrests, especially when intended to restrict on-campus expression, undermines academic freedom, institutional autonomy, and democratic society generally.
Sources:
https://felesteen.news/post/94436/الشرطة-بغزة-ادعاءات-منع-الطلبة-من-ارتداء-الكوفية-أمر-مثير-للسخرية
https://www.albawaba.com/ar/أخبار/عاجل-شرطة-حماس-تعتدي-على-طلبة-جامعة-الازهر-1447730
https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2021/09/hamas-fatah-dispute-over-wearing-keffiyeh-spills-over-gaza-university#ixzz77vYnmdYx
http://alhaya.ps/ar/Article/122556/استنكار-واسع-لاعتداء-أمن-حماس-على-طلبة-وموظفي-جامعة-الأزهر
https://www.archyde.com/how-did-the-al-azhar-university-keffiyeh-spark-a-crisis-between-fatah-and-hamas/