Welcome to TheAcademic Friends of Israel
The Academic Friends of Israel has been campaigning against the academic boycott of Israel since 2002. We are concerned about the increasing number of anti-Israel and anti–Semitic incidents on British Campuses as well as the anti-Israel policies of the UK’s education unions.
Our members may or may not support the policies of the Government of the State of Israel but are all agreed that Israel has the right to live in peace within secure borders. We are opposed to the “new” anti-Semitism, which is aimed at Israel, which often hides behind legitimate criticism of Israel.
The AFI Digest and latest news
Vol.7 Num 6 - 28 March 2008
Guess what - The Academic Boycott is back in the UK as the UCU executive backs new boycott call.
Read the latest Digest in full
Vol 7 Num 5 - 24 March 2008
This issue of the digest concerns itself with the National Union of Teachers conference motion to distribute a Palestinian Solidarity Campaign educational pack and the results of the UCU National Executive elections.
It also contains a report provided to the United States Congress on Contemporary global antisemitism, an essay on Online Antisemitism 2.0 "Social Antisemitism" on the "Social Web"
and a Jerusalem Post story about One in four Israeli academics now working in the United States. There is also a copy of a lecture on "Free Expression and the Rule of Law" given by by Sir Ken Macdonald QC, The Director of Public Prosecutions
Starting in this Digest is an events section advertising forthcoming UK events involving Israeli academics. This is part of our policy to further Israeli-UK academic cooperation and understanding.
Read this AFI Digest in full Or subscribe to the AFI Digest via e-mail
NEW:
The Academic Boycott of Israel: A Review of the Five-Year UK Campaign to Defeat It by Ronnie Fraser
To read the essay click here
An earlier essay The Academic Boycott of Israel: Why Britain? by Ronnie Fraser has been has been updated and published by The Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs in the book; Academics against Israel and the Jews edited by Dr. Manfred Gerstenfeld [ISBN 978-965-218-057-5, 276 pp.]
To read the essay click here
Want to know more about collaborative projects Israel Universities have with Palestinians and others? Let us introduce you to Israeli Academia
The New Antisemitism
“What we are witnessing today is the second great mutation of anti Semitism in modern times, from racial anti-Semitism to religious anti-Zionism with the added premise that all Jews are Zionists. It uses all the medieval myths… The mutation is this; that the worst crimes of anti-Semites in the past-racism, ethnic cleansing, attempted genocide, crimes against humanity-are now attributed to the Jews and the state of Israel” - The Chief Rabbi of the United Kingdom, Sir Jonathan Sacks
“Under the “new” anti-Semitism, prejudices, blood libels and double standards once leveled at the individual Jew are addressed to the personification of collective Jewry, the State of Israel. If we check whether Israel is being demonised or deligitimised, or whether a double standard is being applied to it – we will always be able to see anti-Semitism clearly.” - Natan Sharansky
Read our page on antisemitism here