A Georgia high school teacher has been arrested for allegedly threatening to behead a Muslim student who protested an Israeli flag in his classroom.
Benjamin Reese, 51, a seventh-grade social studies teacher at Warner Robbins Middle School, was arrested last Friday on charges of making threats of violence and cruelty to children, WMAZ reported.
Multiple people reported hearing him yell threats after a girl confronted him in the hallway and told him she found the flag in his room offensive “because Israelis kill Palestinians,” according to an incident report.
“You motherf—king piece of s—t! I will kick your ass! I should cut off the heads of your mothers!” he reportedly shouted after accusing the girl of being antisemitic.
Several students said they heard Reese also say he was going to “cut his throat and drag his ass out and cut his head off.”
The teacher — who has not returned to campus since the threat — told the girl he was Jewish and had relatives in Israel, according to the document.
Benjamin Reese, 51, is charged with making threats of violence and cruelty to children. Warner Robins high school
“You don’t make antisemitic comments like that to a Jew,” a faculty member heard Reese say, according to a report of the incident. The student reacted negatively but did not yell, the report said.
A deputy interviewed several witnesses, including teachers and students. Surveillance video shows Reese screaming and returning to her classroom, but has no audio, WMAZ said.
When asked by deputies if he had threatened students, Reese became defensive and denied talking to anyone, the report states.
The teacher later said he told a student who was offended by the flag that they were antisemitic but denied saying anything racist.
He later said he had “nothing else” to say and “cited his civil rights.”
The incident at Warner Robins High School comes at a time of heightened tensions during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Google st View
In a statement to WMAZ, the school system said “All Houston County School District employees are required to adhere to the Educator Code of Ethics.
“If there is a violation or alleged violation, we investigate and respond accordingly. While we cannot discuss specific personnel matters, we can share that Mr. Reese has not been on the Warner Robins High School campus since Dec. 7, 2023,” the statement said.
A judge set Reese’s bond at $2,500 for the terroristic threats charge and $5,000 for the cruelty charge. Reese was released.
The incident occurred at a time of heightened tension during the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza.
There have been numerous incidents of biased antisemitic and anti-Muslim behavior following the October 7 Hamas attack and amid Israel’s offensive in Gaza.
“We welcome swift action against Benjamin Reese including the charges and arrest related to the horrific threats he allegedly made against a child,” Azka Mahmood, executive director of CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations)-Georgia, told CNN in a statement.
“We hope that the Board of Education will take appropriate measures to ensure that, if this teacher really made the statements he is accused of, he is not allowed to enter the classroom where he can cause untold harm to Muslim, Arab and Palestinian students. ,” he added.
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
