Arab pro-Israel activist Yoseph Haddad and his fiancée Emily Schrader have said they were chased by an angry mob after he spoke at Nottingham University.
Mr Haddad, 37, who runs a charity focusing on peace between Arabs and Jews in Israel, says he was sworn at and abused by around 70 pro-Palestinian activists during his speech at the university, before a crowd of people ran after his car as he left the campus.
“We were stuck in a traffic jam and they were jumping between lanes in the middle of the road to get to us,” said Mr Haddad. “It was crazy and totally unbelievable.
"The people in the car were frightened about what they would do if they got near us.
“They took it too far and need to be held accountable for their actions. But unfortunately I don’t see who is going to hold them accountable.
It seems like the universities, especially the student unions, are captive to the pro-Palestinian movement.”Mr Haddad and Ms Schrader, 31, who were in the UK with the organisation Stand With Us, have faced demonstrations all week and were travelling with four security guards.
Dozens of demonstrators were heard calling for an “Intifada” when he spoke at UCL on Monday night.
The following night at Exeter University he was met by a mob screaming, “There is only one solution, Intifada, Revolution.”But the pair were surprised at the level of hostility at Nottingham which has a sizeable Jewish student population.
During Mr Haddad’s talk, he said, one pro-Palestinian activist shouted a stream of curses in Arabic while others called him a traitor and not a real Arab. “What was unusual was the level of violence, the aggressiveness, the hatred, the racism,” said Mr Haddad, who does talks around the world about life as an Arab Israeli and his charity Vouch for Each Other.
“The bigger picture is that while I am leaving the UK – but don’t worry I will be back – is that the Jews, the Israelis and the pro-Israelis are all targeted by these extremists. Unfortunately, their numbers are not small, and they are only getting bigger and bigger.
“I can’t believe I am actually saying this, because it is so sad, but I don’t believe Jews or Israelis are safe in the UK. I don’t know what the outcome of this movement will be.”
