#BDS: African academics launch boycott campaign against Israeli universities

JOHANNESBURG, (PIC)-- Hundreds of African academics with the support of international influential figures announced an initiative to boycott Israeli universities until their state ends its occupation of the Palestinian territories. More than 200 academics from 13 African universities pledged in a statement reported by different media outlets on Sunday to support the initiative made the university of Johannesburg which calls for ending academic cooperation with the Israeli occupation. The Egyptian Al-Ahram newspaper said today that a lot of international influential figures support this initiative including noted South African archbishop and Nobel laureate Desmond Tutu in addition to leading figures in South Africa. The academics' statement noted that the Israeli universities are not targeted due to their ethnic identity or religious faith, but because of their support for the apartheid regime in Israel, especially the university of Ben-Gurion which directly and indirectly support the military attacks which are carried out by the Israeli army against the Palestinians. The academics also accused Ben Gurion university of sponsoring scientific research projects that serve the armament program of the Israeli army and contribute to the production of prohibited weapons that are used against the Palestinians. Al-Ahram newspaper pointed out that this boycott campaign was preceded by a report issued months ago by the human sciences research council in South Africa and funded by the department of foreign affairs of South Africa under the title "Is Israel an apartheid state." The report emphasized that the countries, which pursue the apartheid policy, follow three methods to maintain the domination of particular ethnic groups, and in the case of Israel, the regime there uses laws, courts and security apparatuses to implement its racial polices against the Palestinian and in favor of the Jews alone.