The threats come amid heightened tensions on US college campuses and at Penn, in particular, amid the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas.
The University of Pennsylvania said the FBI is investigating after some of its staff recently received threatening antisemitic emails.
Penn President Liz Magill said in a letter to the university community Monday that some staff members got “vile disturbing antisemitic emails threatening violence against members of our Jewish community.” She said Penn police and the FBI are investigating this as a potential hate crime.
The alleged threats named Penn Hillel, a campus Jewish organization; and Lauder College House, a house named for the Lauder family, which has been an important donor to the university.
Authorities swept both sites and found no credible threat, Magill said. Penn’s safety department consulted with federal investigators to sweep the Penn Hillel building multiple times, including with a bomb sniffing dog unit, according to a statement from Penn Hillel on Instagram. Campus police will remain on site, and have increased security presence throughout the campus.
