Harvard students hold Israel entirely responsible for unfolding violence

NEW YORK, Oct 10 (Reuters): Prominent Harvard University alumni on Monday denounced a pro-Palestinian statement from students that blamed Israel for violence engulfing the region and urged the university to take action against the signatories.
The Islamist militant Hamas movement, which controls the Palestinian enclave of Gaza, attacked Israel on Saturday in the worst breach of the country's defenses since Arab armies waged war in 1973. Israel has responded with air strikes on Gaza. Hundreds of people in Israel and Gaza have been killed.
A coalition of 34 Harvard students organisations said they 'hold the Israeli regime entirely responsible for all unfolding violence' following decades of occupation, adding that 'the apartheid regime is the only one to blame'.
The organisations signing the letter included Muslim and Palestinian support groups plus others named for a variety of backgrounds including the Harvard Jews for Liberation and the African American Resistance Organization.
It could not be verified how many students supported the letter.
Harvard President Claudine Gay and senior leadership including 15 deans issued a statement on Monday that said they were "heartbroken by the death and destruction unleashed by the attack by Hamas that targeted citizens in Israel this weekend."
Israeli, Palestinian FMs invited
to address EU meeting
The EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said he has invited the top diplomats from Israel and the Palestinian Authority to address an emergency meeting Tuesday of the bloc's foreign ministers.
Borrell said Israel's Foreign Minister (FM) Eli Cohen and Palestinian counterpart Riyad al-Maliki were asked to participate in the hybrid video and in-person talks after the surprise Hamas assault.
Meanwhile, the European Union backtracked in disarray on Monday on an announcement that aid to Palestinians had been suspended in response to the attack on Israel by Hamas after EU countries complained the bloc's executive had overstepped the mark.
Israeli military mobilises
300,000 reservists
Israel's military said it had found the bodies of roughly 1,500 Hamas militants in Israeli territory as it gained effective control in the south and "restored full control" over the border.
Israel said that Hamas and other militant groups in Gaza are holding more than 150 soldiers and civilians snatched from inside Israel after the attack caught its vaunted military and intelligence apparatus completely off guard.
Saudi prince working to
contain fighting
Saudi Arabia's de facto ruler told Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas he was working to prevent "an expansion" of conflict after the surprise Hamas attack on Israel, Saudi state media said early Tuesday.
Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman also told Abbas the Gulf kingdom continued "to stand by the Palestinian people to achieve their legitimate rights to a decent life, achieve their hopes and aspirations, and achieve just and lasting peace," the official Saudi Press Agency reported.
Reeling from the Palestinian Islamist group's unprecedented ground, air and sea attacks, Israel has counted 800 dead and launched a withering barrage of strikes on Gaza that have raised the death toll there to 687.