Cambridge University investigating after researcher called Chief Rabbi an ‘Israeli Nazi’

The University of Cambridge has launched an investigation into a senior researcher following a series of posts on his X (formerly Twitter) account.

In his posts, Edward Tomasz Napierała referred to Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis as an “Israeli Nazi” and described the October 7th Hamas attacks as “an act of resistance.” He further compared these attacks to the 1943 Warsaw Ghetto Uprising, a significant act of Jewish resistance during World War II.

The researcher in the department of computer science and technology also characterised antisemitism as a “fake problem” and equated “Jews in 2024” with “German Nazis in 1945,” suggesting that future generations would bear a similar stigma, Jewish Chronicle reports.

Edward Napierała has since clarified that his Tweets were “all about actions of Israel – the state – and not Jewish people”, whilst the University of Cambridge has confirmed it is investigating the Tweets, adding that it supports freedom of speech but that it has “zero tolerance of all forms of racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, unlawful discrimination and abuse.”

One post reads: “He was absolutely right – almost all cases of alleged antisemitism are made up. It’s a fake problem invented to deflect discussion away from genocide – and of course for you to get more money from donors.”

He also shared graphics juxtaposing the Star of David with the Nazi swastika and comparing Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to Adolf Hitler.

via X @etnapierała

Another post read: “To Israel, every Palestinian male is a combatant. Please remember Israel has been indiscriminately killing Palestinians for decades years now. October 7th was just an act of resistance. Returning captives wouldn’t end anything, Israeli govt said that many times.”

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via X @etnapierała

In response to a tweet by the official Yom Hashoah UK (Holocaust Remembrance Day) account about a recital made by the president of the Board of Deputies, Phil Rosenberg, he called him a “disgusting Nazi pig”.

Another Tweet in response to one user read: “Do you know how Nazis argue about differences fascism and Nazism? You’re doing it now. Everyone knows what you did. Jews in 2024 are German Nazis in 1945. Your children will have to live with this stigma. And some of you will, hopefully, get hunted like German Nazis did.”

Edward Napierała, who has been affiliated with Cambridge since 2017 and contributes to the FreeBSD operating system, has not publicly responded to the investigation, but has since clarified the meaning behind some of his Tweets.

The situation has sparked discussions within the university community regarding the boundaries of academic freedom and the responsibilities of staff members on public platforms.

Edward told The Tab Cambridge: “If you look at statistics, you’ll find that the vast majority of alleged cases of antisemitism are just protests against genocide, and this one is no different.

“Note how everything I wrote is verifiably true; it’s just that it goes against the taboo so it can ‘feel offensive’, same way health education can feel offensive to an anti-vaxxer.

“Unfortunately the university has rules to follow, so even obviously fake accusations have to be properly investigated instead of being thrown out right away, and that’s being weaponised by pro-Israeli organisations to harass employees who dare to speak up.  Similar mechanism has been used to target NHS workers.”

Edward told the JC: “Israel is committing genocide, and it’s our – everyone’s – responsibility to speak up against it. That’s what ‘Never Again’ is all about. And that’s what I’m doing. Protest needs to be seen to be effective.

“Note that this is all about actions of Israel – the state – and not Jewish people. If you look at my wall you’ll likely see whole bunch of posts from anti-genocide Jewish orgs. Even [The Board of Deputies] itself recently (kind of) dissented, and I’d expect more and more organisations to follow suit.”

About the tweet calling for people to get “hunted” like the Germans, Edward said he was referring to “Israeli perpetrators”, not Jews. In reference to his comments about Phil Rosenberg, he said: “The context here is him pushing Israeli propaganda, declaring ‘Never Again’ while supporting state that’s literally doing it again.”

In regards to his comments against the Board, he said: “Again, because of them pushing genocidal propaganda. Also in the recent context of them trying to squash the anti-genocide minority after the FT letter.”

A spokesperson from the University of Cambridge told The Cambridge Tab: “We are investigating these issues, including the recent developments, under our relevant processes. These processes are by their nature confidential so we will not be commenting further.

The university has zero tolerance of all forms of racism, antisemitism, Islamophobia, unlawful discrimination and abuse. The university is fully committed to academic freedom and freedom of speech within the law and to promoting a diverse and inclusive community.”