TORONTO – The anti-Jewish aggression on Canadian campuses, especially at York University, has reached new heights. One pro-Israel student was awakened at home last week in the middle of the night and threatened – his family would be raped and murdered – while another student was assaulted in Vari Hall.

The male student whose family was threatened, a Thornhill resident, immediately notified York Regional Police (YRP). According to Detective Brett Kemp, head of the YRP hate-crime unit, the report has been flagged as a serious hate crime and seasoned investigators are working on the case.

“It’s very disconcerting, based on the hate aspect,” he said.

According to several witnesses, the other student, a female, had taken flyers from a table run by Students Against Israeli Apartheid (SAIA). A male SAIA representative chased after her and assaulted her verbally before grabbing and shaking her. Toronto Police were called and arrived at the scene about 15 minutes later. No charges were laid by police.

York Federation of Students (YFS), which includes many SAIA supporters, had been incensed by a petition launched by Yorknothostage.com – a student group that had been calling for a quick end to the CUPE-organized, three-month long strike – demanding the resignation of the YSF leadership for “endorsing the union instead of taking a neutral stance.”

YFS president Hamid Osman and his executive have been accused of supporting CUPE Local 3903 instead of students’ concerns. YorkNotHostage.com organizer Catherine Divaris had called for Osman to step down immediately.

YFS had also passed a motion “in solidarity with Gaza” and in condemnation of the Jewish state during the strike.

After only a few days of petitioning, the signatures of York students wanting to bring down the YFS leadership is nearing  4,500. The number needed is 5,000.

According to Sammy Katz, president of Hasbara Fellowhips, a Zionist student organization, and a strong supporter of what is being called the ‘Drop YFS Campaign,’ the petitioning table is “legitimate and approved,” and YFS leaders have been harassing those wanting to sign, blocking access and trying to convince them that it’s a “Zionist conspiracy.”

The majority of those who signed are politically neutral and they want YFS to focus on issues that concern them as students, he said, adding that the anti-Israel motion “was probably the least of the reasons” for the petition and YFS seems to have dropped anything else they might have been doing in order to opposed the petition.

When the Jewish Tribune asked a York spokesperson what was being done to protect the students’ freedom of expression and the right to challenge YSF, the answer given was that the “tension had eased off” and “both the student centre management and our student leadership folks are continuing to monitor any infringements.” This response came only a couple of hours before the assault on the Jewish student and no assurances were forthcoming following the attack.

Jewish students have been reporting to B’nai Brith Canada about many incidents such as being called “dirty Zionists” on campus and about being discouraged from becoming politically involved.

“You just feel threatened, not only by the anti-Israel organizations on campus. Security on campus does absolutely nothing,” said student Ronit Gordon. “It’s hate speech and incitement. As a Jewish student on campus… you shouldn’t have to deal with that.”

Nonetheless, “this is the first time we’ve seen anything like this, where Jewish students have been this politically engaged,” said Aaron Rosenberg, vice-president, Hasbarah at York.

An SAIA demonstration at York “against the Israeli assault on Gaza” was planned for Thursday.