Prof. Claims Washington U. Axed Him Over Anti-Hamas Post

A longtime Washington University professor says he was fired for posting an anti-Hamas message on social media that was condemned by Muslim advocacy groups as a call for the “ethnic cleansing” of Palestinians.

According to the New York Post, geneticist Seth Crosby alluded to Israel’s retaliation for the militant terror group’s Oct. 7 attack in an exchange with another user on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter.

“It is a much needed cleansing, yes, but not an ethnic one,” Crosby wrote, according to screenshots obtained by the Post. “Israel is not targeting humans.”

The post reportedly outraged several Muslim groups, which claimed Crosby was dehumanizing the Palestinian population.

“It is unconscionable that a professor at a Missouri institution of higher education would allegedly call for the ethnic cleansing of any population and would seek to dehumanize the target of that crime against humanity,” CAIR-Missouri Board Chair Yasir Ali said in a statement. “We urge Washington University to investigate this troubling incident and to take appropriate action.”

According to the Post, Crosby later clarified that he was referring only to Hamas members, not Palestinians as a whole.

“I am so very sorry for the anger I have caused by my clumsy words,” he wrote. “Israel is targeting Hamas, an organization which has taken the life’s of thousands of Israeli citizens. I did not intend to imply that the deaths of the Palestinian people was in any way acceptable.”

Before deleting his account on Saturday, the professor reportedly wrote that he had “destroyed himself” and been fired by the St. Louis university.

In a Sunday email, Washington University spokesperson Julie Flory told Newsweek that Crosby remains employed.

“The opinions he has expressed as an individual do not represent the university’s position,” spokesperson Julie Flory said. “We are following up as appropriate, according to our policies and processes.”

Crosby’s name and title appeared on the school’s website as of Tuesday, but his picture and bio had been taken down.

He spent nearly 20 years at the university, according to his now-deleted LinkedIn profile, and last served as director of research collaborations for the genetics department.

Conversely, more than 50,000 people have signed a petition to fire Columbia University Modern Arab Politics and Intellectual History professor Joseph Massad after he penned an article that the petition says praises Hamas for its deadly attack on Israel.

Hamas’ multi-pronged attack on the Jewish state Oct. 7 killed more than 1,400 people and wounded hundreds more. Approximately 200 people were taken hostage by the Gaza-based terror group, according to The Associated Press.

Israeli retaliatory air strikes have killed 2,778 Palestinians and wounded 9,700, the Gaza Health Ministry reported Tuesday.