University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) Chancellor Julio Frenk condemned his own university for hosting the attorney of September 11 mastermind and murderer of Daniel Pearl, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, on the 25th anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, the New York Post reported.
Frenk noted that Daniel Pearl's father, Judea Pearl, teaches at UCLA, making the decision to host the lawyer who defended his son's murderer especially egregious.
“Judea Pearl is a deeply valued member of the UCLA community, and I have profound respect for him, for the memory of his son Daniel, and for his decades-long commitment to combating antisemitism, terrorism and hatred," Frenk said. “The brutal murder of Daniel Pearl was an act of unspeakable evil, and I support Judea and his family. We also mourn the thousands of lives lost from the terrorist attack on September 11, 2001, as well as the suffering of countless families and communities."
He added: “UCLA’s values are clear. We reject antisemitism and terrorism in all their forms, and we believe our campus must be a place where the dignity of every member of our community is respected."
“In this case, I understand why Professor Pearl and others are deeply hurt. Judea’s voice, and the history behind it, deserve to be heard with the seriousness and humanity they demand," he said.
Melanie Partow, who has represented Mohammed for the last six years, was slated to speak at the event on Friday, the anniversary of the deadliest terrorist attack ever committed on American soil. No victims or family members of victims of the attacks were invited to speak at the event, which was focused on criticizing America's response to the attacks rather than commemorating the attacks or their victims. Several speakers have also expressed support for terrorism against Israel.
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed is an Al-Qaeda terrorist accused by the US of being the principal architect of the September 11 attacks on New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon. He and four others were charged in 2012 with terrorism, hijacking aircraft, conspiracy, murder in violation of the law of war, attacking civilians, attacking civilian objects, intentionally causing serious bodily injury, and destruction of property in violation of the law of war.
Wall Street Journal journalist Daniel Pearl was kidnapped on January 23, 2002 in Karachi while doing research on Islamic terrorists. Four weeks later, American officials received a video of the grizzly execution, in which Pearl declared just before terrorists slashed his throat, “I am a Jew!"
Khalid Sheikh Mohammed claimed responsibility for the beheading of Daniel Pearl in 2007. Forensic analysis by the FBI also determined that Mohammed was the terrorist who carried out the beheading.
Judea Pearl told the New York Post: “Colleagues inform me that, sadly, UCLA Law School is guilty of such [a] practice: Weaponizing the painful days of 9/11 and 10/7 to promote hateful ideologies. Having lost a son to such an ideology, I stand ashamed of my university."