(JTA) — A college in Dublin said it “regrets” the cancellation of an appearance by the Israeli ambassador to Ireland following pro-Palestinian protests.
The question-and-answer session with Zeev Boker and the Society for International Affairs, or SOFIA, at Trinity College had been scheduled for Monday night.
The event was canceled after about 40 pro-Palestinian students carrying Palestinian flags and protest signs occupied the venue. Police and university security employees were unable to remove the protesters, leading to the cancellation.
“The university regards what happened as an unacceptable attack on free speech,” the college said in a statement issued Tuesday. “The ambassador has been a regular and welcome visitor to Trinity since his appointment. He had dinner in the university earlier in the same evening and attended another event in Trinity last week.”
Trinity Provost Patrick Prendergast told the Israeli news website Ynet that he looked forward to welcoming Boker to campus again under better circumstances.
“This was most unfortunate and represents the antithesis of what Trinity stands for,” Prendergast said. “Universities should be able to facilitate the exchange of ideas. The protesters have violated that fundamental belief.”
Israel’s Foreign Ministry on Tuesday called on the college “to take the appropriate measures to deal with the instigators of last night’s protest” and also said “we expect the Irish authorities to take the necessary measures to ensure freedom of speech for Israel’s ambassador,” The Times of Israel reported.
The ministry also told the news website that it was “horrified by the vicious action of a group of protesters.” It said the protesters chanted “genocidal slogans calling for Israel’s destruction while barring access to the lecture venue.
Meanwhile, the University of Central Lancashire in Britain canceled an event that was scheduled as part of Israel Apartheid Week later this year, saying it contravened the definition of anti-Semitism adopted by the government and was “unlawful.”
The panel discussion was titled “Debunking Misconceptions on Palestine” and was organized by the university’s Friends of Palestine group to look at the boycott of Israel.
“The UK government has formally adopted the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s new definition of what constitutes anti-Semitism,” a university spokesman told the London-based Jewish Chronicle.”We believe the proposed talk contravenes the new definition and furthermore breaches university protocols for such events, where we require assurances of a balanced view or a panel of speakers representing all interests.”
He added: “In this instance our procedures determined that the proposed event would not be lawful and therefore it will not proceed as planned.”
