California professor sues university over suspension for online comments on Gaza

A professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco filed a lawsuit Wednesday, alleging that the university violated her freedom of speech by suspending her for her online comments on Israel’s war in Gaza, according to court documents

A professor of medicine at the University of California, San Francisco filed a lawsuit Wednesday, alleging that the university violated her freedom of speech by suspending her for her online comments on Israel’s war in Gaza, according to court documents.

Rupa Marya’s social media posts included expressing “solidarity with the hospitals and healthcare workers that Israel was attacking in Gaza,” according to court documents.

The complaint stated that Marya “felt an obligation to speak out and did so using her X account.”

Israel’s war in Gaza has left more than 52,000 people dead since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants killed 1,200 people in Israel and took 251 people hostage. Israel has received intense criticism from around the world, including from the United Nations, for its actions in Gaza.

Attorney Mark Kleiman said Marya was fired last month, “despite requesting a hearing, which she was entitled to.”