To read The New York Times coverage, which includes an Al Jazeera television interview with Chomsky broadcast on Sunday, please visit http://thelede.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/05/16/chomsky-barred-from-west-bank-by-israel/.
Chomsky ban: "An end to freedom"? | ||
Noam Chomsky, the American academic barred from entering the occupied West Bank on Sunday night, has not been particularly outspoken about the incident. In the US media, too, Chomsky's expulsion attracted relatively little interest. But the incident has sparked a debate within Israel, where a number of prominent journalists and writers questioned whether it's part of a trend - of the Israeli government denying entry to people simply because of their political views. The Israeli daily Ma'ariv reported that the decision to bar Chomsky came from an official in the Israeli interior ministry - and that he was barred for being a "leftist." Chomsky is hardly the first person barred from Israel on ideological grounds. Jared Malsin, the English editor of the Ma'an news service, was deported from Israel in January for his political views. And Ivan Prado, a Spanish clown, was deported earlier this year, also for his political views. The Association of Civil Rights in Israel told the Jerusalem Post that people with left-wing views are routinely barredfrom entering Israel.
Boaz Okon, the legal affairs editor for the Israeli daily newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth, said the issue could mark"the end of Israel as a freedom-loving state of law".
Ethan Bronner, the Jerusalem bureau chief for the New York Times, reported on the debate within Israel, where one conservative member of the Knesset said barring people with Chomsky's viewswas a decision "to protect our existence." Israel's interior ministry has characterized the incident as a "misunderstanding," and there's some speculation in the Israeli press that Chomsky will be allowed to enter the West Bank in the coming days. If you missed it, here's the video of Chomsky's interview with Al Jazeera on Sunday night: |
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Not all Jews support Israel blindly
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