Two Jewish DePaul students attacked while showing support for Israel, the University of Chicago says

Two Jewish students at DePaul University in Chicago who “visibly showed their support for Israel” were targeted by masked assailants on Wednesday, according to a statement from the university’s president.

The students, two men in their 20s, were attacked by unknown assailants who punched one victim in the face and body and pushed the other to the ground before running away, Chicago police said, and both refused emergency medical care.

“We are outraged that this happened on our campus,” university President Robert L. Manuel said in a speech statement. “It is completely unacceptable and a violation of DePaul’s values ​​to uphold and care for the dignity of every individual.”

“The university is actively working with the Chicago Police Department to investigate this incident so they can determine whether it should be classified as a hate crime that has affected our students because of their Jewish identity,” Manuel said.

The incident — on the Lincoln Park campus — is being classified as simple battery as the investigation continues, Chicago police said. Police did not say in its news release whether the attackers were wearing masks.

It was not immediately clear how the victims expressed their support for Israel.

The campus witnessed tensions earlier this year when authorities dismantled a student-run camp in May, after more than two weeks of demonstrations calling for the university’s divestment from companies linked to Israel. The encampment was one of the last remaining encampments in the Chicago area at a time when college campuses across the U.S. were experiencing such protests, according to CNN affiliate WLS.

Wednesday’s incident comes as tensions in the Middle East rage, with Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza creating a dire humanitarian crisis while fueling global advocacy by Israeli and Palestinian supporters, many of whom favor a ceasefire.

It follows a an alleged hate crime incident in nearby West Rogers Park, where a suspect has been charged in an attack last month on a Jewish man on his way to a synagogue.

Threats to Jews in the United States tripled in the year following Hamas’s deadly October 7 terrorist attack on Israel, preliminary data provided to CNN by the Anti-Defamation League shows. The Council on American-Islamic Relations received 8,061 reports of anti-Muslim prejudice in 2023, the highest number in the group’s 28 years of tracking hate, it said in April.

“We will do everything we can to hold those responsible for this scandalous incident accountable,” DePaul’s president said Wednesday.

CNN has contacted the Attorney General’s Office for comment.

This story has been updated with additional information.

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