Some 1,170 doctors and medical professionals sent a letter to Brown University demanding that the school does not rehire a known antisemitic physician.

The letter, organized by the National Jewish Advocacy Center, urged Dr. Louis Rice, head of the Department of Medicine at Brown’s medical school, not to rehire known Hezbollah supporter Dr. Rasha Alawieh as an assistant professor.

According to the transcript of a Homeland Security interview unsealed on May 7, 2025, Alawieh expressed support for deceased Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

At one point, immigration officials asked Alawieh why, if she knew that Nasrallah was the leader of a foreign terrorist organization, she “chose to ignore the terrible acts that he advocates for?” She responded, “Because it’s not related to politics. It’s related to faith and spirituality.”

Alawieh, a transplant nephrologist, traveled to her home country of Lebanon in February to “visit family” and attend Nasrallah’s funeral. She was detained by US customs officials upon returning and was deported.

Demonstrators gather in support of Dr. Rasha Alawieh, a kidney specialist and assistant professor at Brown University who was refused re-entry to the United States despite holding an H1-B visa, in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., March 17, 2025. (credit: BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS)
Demonstrators gather in support of Dr. Rasha Alawieh, a kidney specialist and assistant professor at Brown University who was refused re-entry to the United States despite holding an H1-B visa, in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., March 17, 2025. (credit: BRIAN SNYDER/REUTERS)

'No place for Dr. Alawieh’s support of those who advocate Jew-hatred'

Mark Goldfeder, CEO and director of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, said the Department of Homeland Security acted “appropriately” in deporting Rasha Alawieh.

“Particularly, as a non-citizen work visa holder, there is no place for Dr. Alawieh’s support of those who advocate Jew-hatred and jihad terror in the US, let alone in US medicine,” he added.

The letter asked that Alawieh not be allowed to resume working at Brown University Health, regardless of the outcome of her ongoing litigation.

“She is a threat to fellow faculty, as well as to patient safety and care for which Brown University is on notice, making her also a liability threat to the university itself,” the letter adds.

“Antisemitism is running rampant in the medical profession,” stated Peggy Shapiro, executive director of the Center for Combating Antisemitism.

“A recent study revealed that 40% of Jewish healthcare workers have experienced antisemitism in their professional or academic environment since the October 7, 2023, massacre in Israel.”

She added that there had already been multiple incidents of healthcare workers expressing hatred for Jews in online videos and social media posts, some going as far as to express “a desire to or having already murdered Jewish patients.”

The letter asks for public assurances that Alawieh would not be welcome at Brown University Health.

At the time of her deportation, Dr. Douglas Shemin, who recruited Alawieh to Brown, told CNN, “She was the best candidate for the job medically, and her absence will be a loss for the men, women, and children in our state who have chronic kidney disease and will have kidney transplants.”

“Rasha is the sweetest person; we’ve never had an issue with her in any way,” Dr. Paul Morrissey, the director of Brown’s transplant program, told Boston’s WCVB-TV. “She’s an outstanding physician [and an] outstanding person. She’s a pleasure to work with, and we’re horrified by this entire event.”