A manager at the University of York has described Holocaust refugees seeking refuge in Mandate Palestine as “arrogant Zionists” and claimed that Israeli forces killed most of the victims of October 7.
Sabrina Zissler, a Global Partnerships Manager at the University of York since 2015, has also defended Hamas and claimed UK politics are “deep into the Zionist agenda”.
On February 7, Zissler posted: “I feel it’s unfair to call it the Hamas attack when we now know that Israeli forces have killed most of them,” referring to false claims that the IDF had a role in the massacre of Israeli civilians on October 7.
Zissler defended Hamas in a post on 8 February, writing: “[Zionists] already have a list of war crimes the length of the Gaza Strip. And then they wonder why Hamas resist. They’ve been left to their own device persecuted for 75 years and the <<international community>> is made of terrorists.”
In a 9 February response to a video of IDF soldiers dancing, Zissler posted to X: “If terrorist means be the opposite of this then YES by all means.”
In response to a post about Jewish refugees arriving in Mandate Palestine after the Second World War, Zissler wrote on 12 February: “The sheer arrogance of Zionists when they went from port to port where no one would take them in except Palestinians. The sheer arrogance and delusional sociopathy #nazionism No one wants you in Palestine so go back to the US where they looooove you so much.”
Zissler also hinted at the conspiracy theory about Zionist “control” of the media, posting on 13 February that UK media coverage was “highly methodical. It is highly strategised. UK politics are deep into the Zionist agenda.”
In a tweet on 12 February, Zissler reposted a news story about a former UK rabbi caught with child abuse images, adding the caption: “Zionists and their obsession with rape and rape threat. It needs to be clinically investigated”.
After an X / Twitter account called NudderingNudnik tweeted screenshots of Zissler’s posts, the University of York employee changed her account to private.
A University of York spokesperson told the JC: “We are aware of the comments posted on social media and we are managing this in accordance with the appropriate University policies and procedures.
“The comments were made in a personal capacity and should not be considered a reflection of the views of the University.
“We are unable to comment further for reasons of confidentiality.”
Zissler has been contacted for comment.