Exclusive: Elected NUS delegate calls Jewish man ‘subhuman rat’

Daniel Yahia, elected NUS delegate from Edinburgh has posted on Facebook about the Israeli football player Nir Bitton who plays for his favourite club, Celtic.

Weeks after having been elected he ditched the post within the NUS and never took it up.

In a status seen by The Tab, he called Zionists “subhuman” and “rats”:

“Sick of seeing Celtic fans creaming themselves over Nir Bitton. We are a club open to all, that cannot be disputed, but by all, we mean humans, of difference creeds, races and religions. Zionists are subhuman and, Nir Bitton is a filthy, Zionist rat. Get him as far to fuck from our club as possible. If you’re gonna wave your Palestinian flag, don’t be a hypocrite and demand this bastard takes his place on the team. Only place he should be an ever present is a jail cell for supporting the apartheid regime. Cunt.”

After a supportive comment saying that he should be gassed, Yahia responded with “Be too good for him mate, expose him to the worst torture which the IDF uses on young Palestinian kids, see how much of a man he is then. Scumbag.”

The post has since been deleted

Yahia, who studies History and Politics, was elected as an NUS delegate for Edinburgh university, but has yet to take up the post. He has a history of anti-Zionist comments on social media.

When we spoke to Daniel Yahia, in a lengthy defence, he said: “Nir Bitton has been a Celtic player for many years. When he first signed, the support got right behind him, as we do with every player. He is a talented young player, and we had high hopes for him when he began to blossom in his first season. However during the 2014 systematic slaughter in Gaza, where almost 3,000 Palestinians were slaughtered by ZIONIST agenda, Bitton revealed a photo on Instagram to be in support of the IDF.

“Celtic’s fans for decades have long had a left wing agenda and a sense of standing up against the oppressor, whether that be the British Empire or Netanyahu’s Israel. Bitton’s political views do not align with the fans’, Zionism contrasts with equality, solidarity and many other factors which make up the Celtic support. With dozens more dying since, Bitton has again spoken of his support for the regime, picturing himself with Netanyahu, a war criminal. We are a club open to all, but with an apartheid state we cannot welcome its supporters. We were the first club in Britain to have an Asian play for us, we have broke down barriers of prejudice long before any others.

“I did not pick out Bitton for his religion once, nor his nationality. Though my words were intemperate and perhaps a little much, they were not racist. My friend Podge’s comments of gassing him, as is slang in Belfast means to sack/ fire, though the context of the status do mean it was inappropriate. Zionists are a political movement, they do not have one religion or nationality. You can have Christian Zionists, and Japanese Zionists.

“It doesn’t matter, the only thing that does is that Zionism is the practice of genocide in Palestine. If you’ve never been to Gaza, I suggest you do go, Because whilst holidaymakers in Tel Aviv bathe in the sun, young children bathe in blood, orchestrated by the savage Israeli regime. I have no problems with Jews or Israelis, just zionists.

“Using anti-semitism as a response for hiding the crimes of the Israel government is disgusting. Einstein once said he would hate to see the Israelis do to the Palestinians what the Nazis done to the Jews, and that has happened.

“Furthermore, the Palestinian people are Semites. Is it Anti-Semitic to criticise them?”

A spokesperson for the NUS said: “These are utterly contemptible comments, which have absolutely no place in either the student movement or wider society. We are not aware of this individual ever having held elected office within, or being a representative of, NUS. These comments stand in complete contrast to the tolerance and inclusivity we value as an organisation and of the society we want to see.”

Nir Bitton sparked debate himself on Instagram when he posted an image in support of Israel’s military offensive against Palestine which was quickly taken down.

The NUSceptics committee, which has been lobbying for SUs to leave the NUS, has told The Tab: “At NUS conference, the floor heard arguments against commemorating the holocaust which received significant support.

“This kind of vile bigotry is unfortunately all too common amongst the NUS clique.”