The Ugly History of the Apartheid Smear

Prof. Hossam Haick

•Thumbs up to  Tom Friedman. Boycott Israeli academics will have a bad impact on Prof. Hossam Haick. He’s an Arab-Israeli who “will teach the first ever massive open online course, or MOOC, on nanotechnology in Arabic” from the Technion.

I know what some readers are thinking: nice bit of Israeli propaganda, now could you please go back to writing about Israel’s ugly West Bank occupation. No. This story is a useful reminder that Israel is a country, not just a conflict, and, as a country, it’s still a work in progress. It has its lows, like the occupation and economic discrimination against Israeli Arabs, and its highs, like the collaboration between Haick and the Technion, which is providing a tool for those in the Arabic-speaking world eager to grasp the new technologies reshaping the global economy. Those, like members of the B.D.S. — boycott, divestiture, sanctions — movement who treat Israel as if it is only the sum of how it deals with the West Bank and therefore deserves to be delegitimized as a state, would do well to reflect on some of these complexities.

• Ambassador Ron Prosor became the first Israeli nominated to supervise UN elections — in this case, elections to the UN Human Rights Committee. YNet adds:

Israel has been making inroads at the international organization after a few years in the diplomatic dark. A few months ago, Israel rejoined the Human Rights Council in Geneva and a few days ago it was admitted into JUSCANZ, a key UN group which advises the Human Rights Council as well as other UN bodies.

• There’s been a rise in stone-throwing and firebombing incidents along Israel’s Route 443. The Times of Israel got an inside look at the IDF’s efforts to secure this road connecting Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.

• Deutsche Bank denies boycotting Bank HaPoalim — or any other Israeli company.

• For more commentary/analysis, see Yossi Ben-Aharon (dangers of Palestinian statehood).