The President of the Israeli National Academy of Sciences warned Education Minister Yitzhak Navon in a letter Tuesday that interference by “exterior elements” in archaeological research amounted to “severe damage to the future of science in Israel.”
Academy President Prof. Yehoshua Jortner was adding his opinion to the escalating conflict over the early closing Wednesday of archaeological excavations near the ancient Roman town of Caesaria by a team from Drew University, Madison, NJ.
University president Paul Hardin ordered the halt after pressure mounted from religious groups — in particular the Atra Kadisha — contending the dig desecrated dozens or perhaps hundreds of Jewish graves, even though archaeologists agree there are no graves on site.
Local archaeologists protested the cancellation in a meeting with Navon. The Education Minister was expected to visit the site Wednesday to decide whether to continue the excavation–even without the Drew University team.
In a meeting Monday, Minister-Without-Portfolio Yitzhak Peretz (Shas) and MK Menachem Porush (Agudat Israel) asked Navon not to renew the dig, but Navon told them it was up to archaeologists to determine “archaeological facts.”
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