MICHAEL BOND believes the call for a boycott of Israeli science is “profoundly misguided” (New Scientist, 20 November 2004, p 20). Numerous academics have argued that their part in the international boycott of South Africa helped to end the apartheid regime. Possibly, they propose, a boycott against Israel could encourage change there.
Bond thinks that it would be far better to reward Israeli and Palestinian scientists who work together in the teeth of opposition from Israel and the Palestinian Authority. The new Israeli-Palestinian Science Organization (IPSO), launched under the auspices of UNESCO in November 2004, supports this.
Douglas Alexander…
