US Professor Arrested Over Antisemitic Online Harassment at College
Haverford College professor Guangtian Ha was arrested and charged with online antisemitic harassment, prompting his administrative leave and a campus ban.
Haverford College in Pennsylvania announced that Prof. Guangtian Ha was arrested and charged with online harassment and intimidation.
Administrative Leave and Ongoing Investigation
College President Wendy Raymond stated that the online attacks attributed to him were antisemitic in nature. She announced his placement on administrative leave and a campus ban while criminal proceedings are underway.
Ha, a religious studies lecturer, was on sabbatical and not teaching during the current academic year. The college statement did not detail the content of the attacks, the identities of those affected, or the precise circumstances leading to the arrest. Raymond noted that a college representative contacted the victims and thanked the FBI, the Haverford Police, and the campus security team for their assistance in the investigation.
"I am deeply disturbed by these allegations, and want to state in the clearest possible terms that any form of harassment or discrimination based on identity is unacceptable, contrary to our values, and has no place at Haverford," Raymond wrote to the college community.
Extremist Statements and House Committee Inquiry
Ha's sharp statements against Israel and Zionism had been documented prior to his arrest. In a letter sent by the Chairman of the US House Committee on Education and the Workforce, Tim Walberg, to Raymond in June 2025, a post published by Ha on X in August 2024 was cited: "The State of Israel must be dismantled and society must undergo a process of denazification." In the same publication, he also wrote: "Zionism is Nazism, it is fascism. Zionists are racists."
The letter also referred to Ha's remarks that the way to deal with Zionists is to stop talking to them and not allow them to waste others' time, with specific reference to liberal Zionists. He even compared "reluctant Zionists" to "reluctant Nazis," claiming that most Nazis may have belonged to this category. The committee demanded the college clarify whether his statements were investigated and to forward documents concerning complaints and disciplinary proceedings against him.
