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Kent State Professor Julio Pino Being Investigated By FBI For Alleged Ties To ISIS

By Tara Dodrill
Published on: 08:56 PST, Jan 21, 2016

Kent State professor Julio Pino is under investigation by the FBI for possible ties to ISIS. During a campus visit by agents, students were reportedly questioned about Pino possibly using the classroom to recruit students to join the Islamic State.

Julio Pino is a Muslim convert who has engaged in controversial activities in the past, but the tenured Kent State professor has been allowed to remain on campus instructing students. According to a New York Times report, Dr. Pino shouted “death to Israel” during a university lecture by a former Israeli diplomat in 2011. In 2002 he reportedly wrote a column in the Daily Kent Stater which “eulogized” a suicide bomber after a terror attack in Jerusalem.

The Daily Kent Stater editor and journalism major Emily Mills said that FBI agents interviewed her about Julio Pino earlier this week. In the past she had published articles about the Kent State professor for the publication. According to Mills, the federal agents have been looking into Pino for more than a year and are searching for evidence regarding his alleged ties to ISIS. While the FBI has the ongoing investigation into the Ohio college professor, the agency is not yet willing to release any details about their findings to the public — a decision which may have caused worry for students, staff, and parents.

Here’s an excerpt from an open letter penned by Julio Pino to the academic publication the History News Network:

“Dear academic friends of Israel:

I hold you directly responsible for the murder of over 1,400 Palestinian children, women and elderly civilians over the past month. This is not symbolic or even legally justified homicide on your part but actual, cold-blooded, calculated killing, for which you are culpable. Your names are scrawled on every bullet fired, bomb dropped, body buried and burnt forehead in Gaza. May your names become a curse word on the lips of every justice-loving person on earth, along with ‘Obama’ and ‘Netanyahu’ Jihad until victory!”

Kent State University President Beverly Warren posted a statement on the school’s website that the Ohio college is cooperating with the FBI investigation into the tenured professor. Warren also stated that the federal agents have “assured” university leaders that no threat has been posed to those on the campus.

“We continue to find Julio Pino’s comments reprehensible and counter to our core values of civil discourse and respect. As a university, we do not defend his views, and he does not speak on behalf of Kent State or members of our community.”

Because Dr. Pino has not been charged with or found guilty of a crime, Kent State officials do not feel that it is appropriate to remove the professor from the classroom at this time. As the FBI investigation continues, so will Pino’s regularly scheduled classes.

https://youtu.be/9kCmtDhY0Xk

Pino reportedly earned his doctorate degree in history from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1991. He landed a job at Kent State shortly after obtaining his educational credentials. The professor accused of having ISIS ties specializes in Latin American and third world history. He is teaching two courses at the Ohio college this semester.

Julio Pino denies allegations that he has ties to ISIS or has done anything wrong. He stated that he is committed to his students and that his “passions” are reserved for his family. He also said that he is not tied to any political organization and follows the teachings of the prophet Micah who urged others to “act justly and love mercy.”

What do you think about Kent State professor Julio Pino being accused of having ties to ISIS?

[Image via Shutterstock.com]

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