Irish call to ban Israeli academia condemned

[Behind the Aegis]

Irish officials, together with prominent members of the community in Israel, denounced a recent call by Irish academics for a boycott of Israeli academic institutions, describing it as counterproductive and discriminatory.

"The Irish government does not support any move to isolate Israel or Israeli institutions," a spokesperson for the Irish embassy in Tel Aviv told Anglo File. "Our aim is always to come to a maximum possible inclusive dialogue. We want to find a true solution to the situation and closing off dialogue would be counterproductive."

"This was a narrow-minded and prejudiced statement," former Chief Rabbi of Ireland Dr. Isaac Cohen, who lives in Jerusalem, said. "To boycott academics who are doing international work in Israel for the whole of society is an act of prejudice. The are adopting current academic views in Europe, where anti-Semitism is growing at a rapid pace."

Last week the Irish Times published a letter in which 61 academics, including Prof. James Bowen, chair of the Ireland Palestine Solidarity Campaign, called for a moratorium on European Union grants and contracts to Israeli academic institutions "until Israel abides by UN resolutions and ends the occupation of Palestinian territories."


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