Lecturer who called for bombing Tel Aviv to remain in custody until trial

A federal court in Pennsylvania ordered that Guangtian Ha, a lecturer at Haverford College accused of a series of antisemitic threats against a Jewish-Israeli colleague and his family, remain in custody. Ha called for a nuclear bomb to be dropped on Tel Aviv and published explicit personal threats, including a call to place Jews in camps. The judge ruled that he poses a danger justifying continued detention.

A federal court in Philadelphia ordered that Guangtian Ha, 42, a lecturer at Haverford College in Pennsylvania, remain in custody until his trial. Ha is charged with threatening harassment of a Jewish-Israeli colleague and his family, after operating at least four anonymous accounts on X and publishing about 50 threatening messages between October 2025 and May 2026. Among other things, he called for a nuclear bomb to be dropped on Tel Aviv, wrote that 'Hitler was right all along,' and called for placing Jews in 'special camps.' The threats included publishing the colleague's home address and the name of his infant son. The colleague's wife was forced to leave home with their children twice. Judge Pamela Carlos ruled that Ha poses a danger and noted a risk of flight, partly because he holds a Chinese passport. Ha pleaded not guilty. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of five years in prison. Despite the severity of the charges, about ten colleagues and friends appeared to support him at the hearing. The college president placed him on administrative leave and banned him from campus.