Moment Seattle University provost grabs Palestinian flag from student's hands just as he was about to unfurl it at commencement ceremony

By LAURA PARNABY, US SENIOR NEWS REPORTER Published: 16:22, 22 June 2026 | Updated: 16:23, 22 June 2026 A Seattle University commencement ceremony has found the national spotlight after a high-ranking administrator ripped a Palestine flag from a student's hand just as she was about to unfurl it on stage.  University provost Shane Martin suddenly snatched the tricolor from Sumeyya Osman on June 14 moments before they posed for a photograph at the graduation ceremony.  Video of the tense exchange was later shared on social media by CAIR Washington, an Islamophobia-focused civil rights group, which claimed Martin had been 'aggressive'.  'A Muslim student communicated to the provost that she does not shake hands with men, she then attempted to hold up her Palestinian flag and had it aggressively ripped away by the provost and subsequently physically accosted her'.  Martin said he did not receive a request from Osman to forfeit the handshake, and that he honored this request from 'at least a dozen other graduating students'.  The pair were seen awkwardly standing side-by-side for a photograph before Osman left the stage, and appeared to unfurl the flag again as she walked.  Osman also spoke with CAIR about the ordeal a few days later.  'I told him that I don't shake hands, obviously because he's a man and I'm a Muslim,' she said. 'But then he just proceeded to try and take the flag away from me aggressively,' Osman said at a press conference on Wednesday.  Shane Martin suddenly snatched the tricolor from Sumeyya Osman just before they posed for a photograph at the Seattle University ceremony, video from the June 14 event shows The pair were then seen awkwardly standing side-by-side for a photograph before Osman left the stage, and appeared to unfurl the flag again as she walked back to her seat in the crowd  'I was shaking a bit. I asked the person next to me, "Do you think anything is going to happen to me? I'm afraid. What if the ceremony ends and they pull me to the side and something happens to me?",' Osman said, according to KUOW.  'We demand accountability, no faculty should ever put their hands on a student,' CAIR said in a statement about the incident.  'This behavior is unacceptable, Muslim students deserve safety to practice their religious and identity expressions.' Martin said 'he did not observe or hear any request from Ms. Osman that she wished to avoid physical contact as part of her Muslim faith.' 'As a leader of a faith-based institution, I have deep respect for the many religious traditions represented on our campus and in the world,' he said in a statement to Fox13.  'If I had known Ms. Osman did not want to be touched, I would have honored the request just as I did for at least a dozen other graduating students who signaled clearly they did not wish to be touched.' Martin then apologized for the incident, stating 'I am sorry for the misunderstanding, and regret that this event has taken attention away from the overall commencement ceremony, the achievements of all of our graduates, and especially the moving benediction that closed the ceremony.' Provost Shane Martin said 'he did not observe or hear any request from Ms. Osman that she wished to avoid physical contact as part of her Muslim faith' A Seattle University commencement ceremony has gained nationwide attention after a provost grabbed a Palestine flag from a student's hand just as she was about to unfurl it on stage After the incident, Seattle University said that 'fostering a supportive environment' was core to the school's Catholic mission, while also maintaining that items 'not aligned' with onstage activities are not permitted.  'We recognize that members of our community hold deeply felt perspectives on many pressing issues and value informed debate and critical reasoning across the university. 'At the same time, commencement is a formal academic ceremony designed to honor each graduate equally within a shared tradition, and we take steps to preserve an inclusive experience for all in attendance,' the school said in a statement sent to Fox13.  Palestine protests have proliferated at graduation ceremonies across the US, particularly in the wake of the October 7, 2023 terror attack in Israel by Hamas and subsequent bombardment of Gaza by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.  At Columbia University, which became the nucleus for pro-Palestine and anti-Israel protests, several graduates tore up their diplomas on stage and displayed Palestine flags as part of a demonstration at the height of the fury in May 2024.  Meanwhile, a group of students stormed the stage at a University of Michigan commencement, waving Palestine and chanting anti-war slogans.  No comments have so far been submitted. 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