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Boycott Divest Sanction not stopping collaboration between Israeli and Canadian universities, ambassador says

"As protests against Israel have grown in the wake of ongoing conflict in Gaza, Rafael Barak, the Israeli ambassador to Canada, said he is pleased by the way local authorities have handled the sometimes violent escalation of hostilities between protest groups.

Meanwhile, BDS movements — passed by several student groups in recent years, including at three universities in Toronto — seem to be having little impact, he said.

“There is almost no Canadian or Israeli university that doesn’t have any co-operation at all,” Mr. Barak said after a speech delivered at the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy on Wednesday."

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"Only a small percentage of university student groups have voted in favour of sanctions — and these motions tend to pass with the encouragement of a small but vocal group of activists. They have been condemned by some as being outright anti-Semitic for their focus on human rights abuses in Israel while ignoring myriad problems in other countries in the region."

This must have certain academics' knickers in a knot.