• Palestine/Israel

Letter to the Hebrew University of Jerusalem protesting suspension of faculty member Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian

Our letter to the leadership of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem objecting to the recent suspension from teaching of an esteemed faculty member, Nadera Shalhoub-Kevorkian, for her comments and reflections prompted by Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.

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Letter condemning punitive measures against Palestinian students in Israeli Universities

Our letter to Israeli government authorities and university rectors condemning the ongoing repressive measures against Palestinian citizens of Israel who are students in Israeli universities and have expressed their solidarity with the Palestinians in Gaza and/or their criticism of the Israel government's military onslaught in Gaza.

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Letter regarding intensified targeting of Palestinian students in Israeli universities

Our letter to Israeli government authorities expressing concern about the mounting threats to and repressive measures against Palestinian students in Israeli universities since the Hamas attack of 7 October

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  • News

Middle East Scholars Announce 2022 Academic Freedom Award Recipients

The 2022 MESA Academic Freedom Award has been given to 6 Palestinian NGOs — Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and Development, Defense for Children International - Palestine, Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees, and the Union of Agricultural Work Committees — for their decades-long pursuit of academic freedom, courageous resilience, and contributions to the field of Middle East Studies.

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Letter protesting new Israel Government directive regarding selection of international scholars and students to teach and study in Palestinian Universities

Letter to Israeli authorities protesting the Government’s proposed policy regarding the selection of international scholars and students to teach and study in Palestinian universities, giving the Israeli military the unilateral power to select and exclude scholars and students and limiting their numbers significantly, while censoring certain disciplines and foci of research. If implemented, the policy would undermine Palestinian universities' ability to recruit appropriate faculty and curtail Palestinians' academic freedom.

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Middle East Scholars Vote to Endorse BDS

The membership of MESA has voted in favor of a resolution endorsing the Palestinian call for boycotts, divestment, and sanctions of Israel as a way to hold the government accountable for ongoing human rights violations. MESA’s Board of Directors will implement it in a manner consistent with MESA’s bylaws as well as relevant U.S. federal, state, and local laws. The resolution states that the boycott will not target individual students or scholars, and reiterates the right of individual MESA members to choose whether or not they wish to participate in an academic boycott of Israeli institutions.

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Letter protesting latest attacks on Palestinian universities and civil society organizations

Letter to the Israeli government protesting the ongoing and intensified attacks on Palestinian universities and civil society organizations. We highlight, in particular, the pre-dawn invasion of Birzeit University by Israeli soldiers on 14 December 2021 and the designation, on 22 October, of six Palestinian civil society organizations as "terrorist."

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Letter Protesting Israeli Army Arrest of 45 Palestinian University Students, and Ongoing Detention of 15 after a Solidarity Visit to a Demolished Home in Turmus ‘Aya

Please see our letter to Israeli officials protesting the Israeli army arrest of 45 Palestinian university students, and ongoing detention of 15 after a solidarity visit to a demolished home in Turmus 'Aya.

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