Separate reports found that Harvard students and faculty encountered an extremely polarized atmosphere on campus of one of the top American universities, both facing anti-Semitism and Islamophobia.

The report released on Tuesday comes after a separate task force was established last year to combat anti-Semitism and anti-Muslim sentiment, a protest on campus against Israel’s war on Gaza.

This is also because Harvard’s legal battle with U.S. President Donald Trump is involved in the administration’s decision to freeze more than $20 billion in funds for universities, a move that Trump claimed was in response to rampant anti-Semitism on campus.

Members of the Jewish, Israeli and Zionist community reported hiding “publicly marking their identities to avoid confrontation”, while members of the Muslim, Arab and Palestinian community described “a feeling of being judged, false statements and silence.”

"What is particularly disturbing is that some students reportedly despise each other rather than sympathize with each other, and desire to criticize and exclusion, especially when social media provides anonymity and distance," Garber said.

“Some students reported being pushed to the periphery of campus life by their peers due to who they are or their beliefs, eroding our shared sense of community in the process.”

The Anti-Semitism and Anti-Israel Bias Fighting Task Force said in its report that Harvard University and the academic community were “understood, practice and tolerated” bias.

The task force said that in an online survey, 26% of Jewish students reported being physically unsafe, while 39% said they did not feel at home in college.

The task force said nearly 60% of Jewish students reported experiencing “discrimination, stereotypes, or negative bias” due to their opinions, and only 25% believed there was no “academic or professional punishment” to express their views.

In other examples of bias cited in the report, the task force cited an unnamed Israeli Arab student who said Israelis were “accustomed to social discrimination” from day one on campus.

"People refuse to talk to you. Not even pretending to be good. Some people pretending to be good, end the conversation in a (a) way, when they find out (I am) Israeli and then don't talk to me again," the report said.

The task force against anti-Muslims, anti-Arab and anti-Palestinian bias found a similar atmosphere of hostility, describing students’ “deep fear” and “uncertainty, abandonment, threats and isolation” status on campus.

"Muslim women wearing Keffiyehs wear headscarves and pro-Palestine students talk about facing verbal harassment, known as 'terrorists' and even spitting," the task force said.

It added: “Doxxing’s issues are particularly stressed as important concerns that not only affect physical safety and mental health, but also future career prospects.”

Nearly half of Muslim students and staff surveyed reported physically unsafe on campus, while 92% said they believed they would face professional or academic penalties for expressing political views.

“As Muslim students, we have been living in fear all the time,” the task force quoted a student who asked not to be named.

“There have trucks driving around campus for months and months showing the faces of Muslim students…My peers have lost their jobs just because they are under the leadership of the Muslim Faith Organization and once they are revoked, they are abandoned…If there are anti-Semitic trucks driving on campus and flying on campus and on planes, I can’t help, I can’t help, but I believe Haddad will do it.”

Both task forces issued a series of recommendations to combat campus bias, including expanding access to legal services that can fight Doxxing and prioritizing admission to students who support public inquiries.

Garber said the university will redouble its efforts to ensure it is “a place to welcome, entertain and compete for ideas in the spirit of seeking truth” and that “mutual respect is the norm”.

“Especially when tensions are high, we have to face the challenges we truly see each other, unique individuals with complex beliefs and identities, abandon our preconceptions and meet with kindness and attention,” he said.