British Prime Minister Tony Blair has called on his country's main academic union to cease its boycott
of Israel
on Wednesday, according to a report by the BBC.
Speaking to the House of Commons, the British prime minister said, "I hope very much that decision is overturned because it does absolutely no good for the peace process or for relations in that part of the world."
| Official Protest |
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| Livni protests UK academic boycott of Israel / Hagit Klaiman |
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Foreign minister tells her British counterpart University and College Union's decision to consider boycott of Israeli academics and institutions is extremely severe |
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"The only solution ultimately is to re-launch the framework for a negotiated peace with a two-state solution at the heart of it and that is what we will be working on in the time to come," Blair added.
The boycott was also blasted by Labour MP Andrew Dismore, who said that "the University and College Union's boycott of Israeli universities is misguided, undermines academic freedoms and contributes absolutely nothing to trying to bring peace to the Middle East."
Last week, the UK's University and College Union (UCU) voted to approve a resolution calling on its members and to "circulate the full text of the Palestinian boycott call to all branches," and to "encourage members to consider the moral implications of existing and proposed links with Israeli academic institutions."
The resolution has since come under heavy criticism around the world, and has prompted calls for a counter-boycott in Israel.
_a.jpg "Photo: Yaron Brenner")
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