US Student Groups Blaming Israel for Violence Face Backlash

Some students at a few U.S. universities blamed Israel this week for the Hamas militants' attack on the Jewish state, drawing a sharp rebuke from academic leaders at the schools as well as from prominent alumni and potential employers.

The debate touched off at Harvard University, the alma mater of eight former U.S. presidents and perhaps the most politically influential school in the country.

A coalition of 34 Harvard student organizations said they "hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence" following decades of occupation of Gaza. They called Israel an "apartheid regime" and said it was "the only one to blame" for the war.

The statement drew the ire of prominent Harvard alumni, university President Claudine Gay, and 15 deans at the school.