Event Featuring Officer of Alleged Hamas Front Set to Take Place at Cambridge Public Library

The Nov. 17 event is being organized by the Harvard Book Store and will be physically hosted at the Cambridge Public Library, despite co-editor's documented familial and organizational ties to Hamas

The Harvard Book Store will host an “evening of solidarity” on November 17, 2025, featuring readings from the book “We Are Not Numbers: Amplifying the Voices of Gaza’s Youth” and remarks from its co-editors, Ahmed Alnaouq and Pam Bailey. The tax exempt Cambridge Public Library will physically host the event.

Jewish Onliner previously reported on the alleged ties between the We Are Not Numbers project (WANN) and Hamas. Additionally, Alnaouq has been found to have documented familial ties to Hamas members.

Alleged Hamas Ties of WANN

WANN is fiscally sponsored in the U.S. by Nonviolence International and registered in Gaza under the umbrella of the Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor (EuroMed), for which Alnaouq also works as the Outreach and Advocacy Officer.

EuroMed’s founder and current chairman, Ramy Abdu, along with former chairman Dr. Mazen Kahel, were both named in a 2013 list released by the Israeli government identifying Hamas operatives and affiliated institutions in Europe. Another watchdog group, Honest Reporting, has described EuroMed as a “Hamas front org.”

EuroMed chariman, Ramy Abdu (left) attending an event in 2013 alongside U.S.-designated Hamas official, Osama Hamdan (left). Credit: Mashrq News

In March 2025, Abdu inadvertently disclosed that he is the brother-in-law of deceased senior Hamas official Muhammad Daoud Ismail al-Jamassi, as Jewish Onliner previously reported.

Moreover, Abdu publicly divulged that he is childhood friends with Assad Abu Sharia, allegedly the founder and leader of the Mujahideen Brigades—a Hamas-affiliated terrorist group that played a key role in the kidnapping of the Bibas children during the October 7th massacre.

The Book Project’s Origins

WANN was launched by Alnaouq with encouragement from co-founder Pam Bailey, an American journalist and activist. According to investigative reporting by GnasherJew, Bailey initially suggested the project as a way for Alnaouq to honor his brother’s memory through writing.

However, Alnaouq’s brother, Ayman Alnaouq, was an active member of Hamas’s military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, and was killed in an Israeli airstrike in 2014.

Ahmed Alnaouq’s brother, Ayman, was a Hamas terrorist. Credit: Al Qassam website

Ayman’s membership in the Qassam Brigades was known to Bailey. In an archived version of WANN’s website, Bailey describes her early communications with Ahmed, in which she notes the “positive” influence Ayman had on him:

“It turns out that Ayman was a resistance fighter with the Al-Qassam Brigades – so quickly assumed to be ‘terrorists’ even by many pro-Palestinian activists. Yet the few little tidbits of information Ahmed shared made me want to get to know him better.

Ayman clearly had played a very positive role in Ahmed’s life, and there was a reason why fighting the Israeli occupation with whatever weapons were at hand seemed to be the only option to the young man. It was, I believed, a critical story to tell – and share.”

Event Proceeds and Vetting Concerns

According to the event flyer, “proceeds of the book support a project providing mentorship and global platform for young Gazan writers.” The involvement of a tax-exempt public institution in hosting an event featuring individuals connected to alleged Hamas-affiliated organizations intensifies questions about the library’s vetting standards for public programming.

When approached for comment by Jewish Onliner, the Cambridge Public Library emphasized that Harvard Book Store is solely organizing the event and that the library’s physical hosting of it does not constitute endorsement.

The library did not directly address whether officials were aware of the speakers’ alleged Hamas connections before approving the space request. Their statement noted that facilities are available to community groups “on an equitable basis, regardless of the beliefs or affiliations of individuals or groups” and that use of library spaces is governed by “departmental policies and procedures,” though no specific vetting process was detailed.