Washington University Student Throws Away Flags From 9/11 Memorial

A Washington University student is being accused of removing American Flag from a 9/11 memorial display.

The student who has been identified as Fadel Alkilani was caught on camera picking up the American flags and placing them in plastic trash bags.

The University placed 2,977 flags on the lawn of Mudd Field to represent each person who was killed during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001. Alkilani said, "that the display was in violation of the school rules." Alkilani is defending his actions of removing the flags saying, "his protest was was to bring attention to the rise of Islamophobia and criticize the US military intervention in the Middle East." He went on to say that, " A memorial which uses US flags is especially insidious, as it does not recognize those who have fallen, but uses a symbol that was on the shoulders of 900,000 people, and uses the innocent lives lost during 9/11 as a political prop upholding American hegemony. "

School officials did condemn the actions saying they were "disappointed" to learn about the incident. However, the school did not comment on if the student would face any consequences for his actions.

"We were disappointed to learn about the disruptions to the 9/11 display on Mudd Field. We condemn the interference with the expression of support by the College of Republicans for the victims of the national tragedy that took place 20 years ago today." -Executive Director Susan McGinn