University of Bristol in the United Kingdom//StockVault

On Sunday, over 700 people signed an open letter in support of accused antisemite and University of Bristol professor David Miller, The Jewish Chronicle reported.

Professor Miller is currently under investigation by the university for calling for the “end of Zionism” in a lecture and accusing Jewish students on campus of being “directed” by Israel to pursue a campaign of censorship. Recently, leaked lectures revealed that he was teaching students that an Islamist terrorist was “an asset of the British state.”

Addressing Chancellor Hugh Brady, the letter said, “The campaign against Professor Miller is about censoring speech on Islamophobia and Israel. This campaign is carefully calibrated to muddy the waters between anti-Zionism (opposition to a dangerous, racist political ideology) and hatred of Jews.”

“The attacks on Professor Miller are an example of how the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism is being weaponized by supporters of Israel and by Islamophobes,” it claimed.

Among the signatories to the letter is Salma Yaqoob, former leader of the leftist Respect Party. In 2013, according to the Chronicle, he promoted conspiracies about the arrest of “Rothschild bankers.” Another signatory, Asim Qureshi, praised Hezbollah at a 2006 Hizb ut Tahrir rally for supposedly defeating Israel, saying, “We know what the solution is and where the victory lies.”

The group said it expects “an unequivocal public statement from the university, defending Professor Miller’s right to academic freedom and showing that it takes Islamophobia seriously.”