Alan F. Segal, a professor of religion and Jewish studies at Barnard, questioned the quality of her research. Saying that Abu El-Haj had suggested that "ancient Israelites had not inhabited the land where Israel now stands", Segal said that she either ignored or misunderstood the evidence to the contrary. In a critique of "Facts on the Ground" published in the "Columbia Daily Spectator", Segal wrote that he opposed Abu El-Haj for professional, and not political, reasons. Segal later told "The Forward" that Abu El-Haj hates Israelis.