A Brooklyn public school teacher is under investigation by New York City education officials after a new lawsuit alleged he praised Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar in a group chat, according to the New York Post.

The lawsuit alleges that Damien Neva, 48, wrote "Long live Yahya Al-Sinwar" in a Signal group of anti-Israel food coop members in November 2024. The filing describes Neva as a leader of the boycott campaign at the co-op. He also allegedly wrote that "that lot does not have the votes to block our campaign," referring to pro-Israel and Jewish members.

The messages surfaced in a lawsuit filed by Jewish members of the co-op after its board voted to ban Israeli goods, ending a years-long dispute. Sinwar was the architect of the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel and was killed by Israeli forces in Gaza in October 2024.

Neva began teaching at PS 77 in Park Slope this year after a career change. He previously worked as a photographer, videographer and social-media director at Next Management, as well as at Ford Modeling and Calvin Klein. The civil-rights group StopAntisemitism has called for his removal. Neva did not comment when approached by the Post.

Reporting based on: nypost.com, pulptastic.com, internewscast.com.