HANOVER, N.H. - JULY 16, 2020 - We are deeply distressed by Maha Hasan Alshawi’s decision to initiate a hunger strike and her refusal to accept numerous offers of support resources and medical and mental health assistance, which we will continue to make available. We have reached out to family members in the hope of enlisting their support for Maha’s well-being. When that outreach was unsuccessful in dissuading her from continuing the hunger strike, we notified public safety officials in Lebanon today (July 16) to request an immediate wellness check.

While our focus must remain on supporting Maha at this difficult time, it is important for our community to understand that we have carefully reviewed all of her allegations against faculty, staff, and students, contrary to the narrative that has been shared on social media and elsewhere. For any complaint a community member brings to us, our policies and processes lead us to consider all the information that community member provides; to speak with the individuals directly involved; to seek and speak to any witnesses; and to decline to take any disciplinary or other action when there is no evidence to support it. We have confidence that those policies and processes were fair, reasonable, and thorough, and we communicated our decisions to Maha transparently and comprehensively. We, therefore, stand by the decisions of the Title IX Office, the Office of the Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, and the Office of Institutional Diversity and Equity that no further investigation or other action is warranted or appropriate.

Again, we stand ready to support Maha and we sincerely hope that she will accept our assistance.