'All-star team of Israel-haters' at Norway school raises concern

Dear Heather. It is sad to hear that you will no longer come here based on a seminar series taking place on a university. It might be of guidance to you to hear that neither the general populace of Norway or its government has anything to do with what a school chooses to have as a theme for a seminar. It's called academic liberty, honey. Once a government interferes with that you no longer have free speech - a concept with which I believe you should be familiar. That means you are still welcome to travel here. As to the seminar series; yes, it is somewhat naive of the dean to believe that having a scientific basis will exclude political views from appearing. And as such, opposing academical views should have been invited. But this is a question of bureaucracy. Do we need a commmity to approve another committy's chosen speakers?

It is true that this is an almost onesided vieu on your conflict with the palestinians - but it has nothing to do with the norwegian goverment, or the norwegians. It is the work of a headmaster of an university. The debate in norwegian media has been and still is deversed, but as always, more than 50% pro Israel.

The solution is not in Hamas and not in the right wing in Israel. The solution is in moderate Israelis and palestinians.

If one hears lectures by Pappe et al and compare them to what's written e.g. in this talkback, it's pretty clear who're the real haters. They argue rationally against what is undeniable and gross human rights abuses, whereas the comments here are just full of vitriol and paranoia. Interestingly, the most hateful comments never come from Israelis, but are consequently posted by people from the US. I guess these are among the religious far-right whackjobs we hear so much about, who make the US so different from all other developed nations.

It's a new low even for this dodgy government. People may disagree with the views of these academics, but they are serious academics. They're not a bunch of Nazis or a bunch of Zionist ideologues. In a free country they can talk freely. Lieberman, Bibi and his assorted bucnh of nutter, losers and chancers need to learn what democracy is really about.

Build a wall, jost make sure it's on your side of the border, if you can please tell us where that is.

Israel-haters ? Indeed not. Ilan Pappe, among others, is an Israeli who loves all that is best in his country's professed - but too seldom concretely expressed - values. "Anti-semitic" ? The names of the participants certainly belie this criticism. "Neutral" ? More and more people are informing themselves about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and choosing a commitment to justice as a prerequisite to peace. This seminar sounds like a valuable educational contribution towards this end.

Steve Benassi from the USA has the audacity to preach to Israel "When will Israelis wake up to the fact that they are stealing land, and pushing the natives onto de facto reservations." This from Benassi, who lives in the country of occupiers and lives his high lifestyle because of it. I don't hear Benassi saying he's moving back to Italy or wherever he came from. I don't hear him saying he's advocating that the American settlers give Wisconsin back to its rightful owners. And I don't hear Benassi saying that Palestinian leaders should be put on trial for the war crimes that Goldstone concluded they committed (it's in the UN report). Benassi is a criminal occupier of native American land. He should go back to where he came from.

...spreading lies and stealing tax dollars.

According to your reasoning, then the palestinians were scattered from their land for not converting to Judaism!!

ALF HOLST ... Beautiful! I hope that you are a true norwegian and not a camouflaged Arab, because, in due course, I will be able to say to you: How nice, to see the muslims take over power in Norway and let the poor muslims AND NORWEGIANS be governed by the sharia laws of the so-called religion of peace ... ISLAM??? HAHHAHAAAAAAA

Actually Pappe, Walt and Meersheimer and the other speakers are speaking the truth to Israel... for Israel's survival. Jeremiah the great Prophet of old has been described as a Quisling by a Jewish modern. Jeremiah loved Israel and spoke the truth to Israel. As another noted the bullied has become the bully, fails to recognise this ( those from the list of speakers many Jews do)and therefore at some time in the future fail... fall ... Israel's leaders from Golda Meir to Netanyah have betrayed Jews ..... they in the end will be seen as the Jew-haters, maybe those leaders had reason to be self-hating. To use the well used comment. To point the finger at demon Palestinians and Norwegians means you have three fingers pointing back at yourself.

When are the Jewish people and the Gov't of Israel going to start accusing of Ethnic Cleaning, the real ethnic cleaners?? THE ARAB/MUSLIM COUNTRIES! Jews and Christians, have been ethnically cleansed from: Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Iran, Yemen, Egypt, Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, Morocco, etc., but I will not mention Saudi Arabia because they already had massacred all the aboriginal Bedouin and the Jewish population at the rise of islam which became the most criminal and murderous religion, competing with the Catholic Church. To the Arab/Muslim claims that "the West is occupying Arab lands and oppressing the muslims" the answer is: Islam has oppressed, murdered, raped and converted by force Jews, Christians, Bedouins, Kabilyans (Algeria), Berbers (Morocco) as well as trying to conquer the rest of Europe during their vandal occupation of the early 6-7th Centuries. How come there are more muslims living in Christians and A Jewish Country, than Christians and Jews living in Arab countries??

I think that this could be countered by sending Lieberman to Norway. Students listening to this man deliver his message of love and hope could not help but think positively about Israel forever after.

Norway's Oil fortune is an automatic link with Arab oil rich nations. Add Socialism to the mix and you get brain-dead society that is totally depended on its government for wealth distribution as well as for clear independent thought process. These people are parroting what their government wants them to know, without having a clue of the truth.

OK, Chris, fair enough. But what happens if Israel evacuates the territories and rockets begin falling on Kfar Saba and Tel Aviv? This is not idle speculation; recall what happened when Israel withdrew from the Gaza Strip: even more Kassam rockets than before the withdrawal. The Israeli fear of giving up the territories is not based on lust for land, but an all too justified skepticism as to our neighbors' intentions.

Oslo was a miserable failure and every Israeli has accepted that. Now, the Norwegian's want retribution for being outed as extreme failures. They started by issuing awards to Nazis, and now they try and teach Islamism in their schools. Just another Scandinavian state - along with Sweden - that has surrendered to the forces of the Quran and have no issue burning Jews in the process.

What the articles conveniently ignores, and what makes zionists deeply uncomfortable: Ilan Pappe is a highly regarded Israeli historian. The Israeli embassy's protest over the seminar is consistent with efforts by zionist groups to silence criticism of Israel in academic spheres (that for sure is the case in the US). Ilan published a scholarly book titled "The Ethnic Cleansing of Palestine" in 2006. The book thoroughly documents how zionists in the 1940's systematically planned and executed the cleansing of hundreds of Palestinian villages. Among the many sources he cites is Ben Gurion's diary, hardly considered Arab propaganda. It's almost comical that Haaretz tagged this article under "anti-semitism".

talk Arab,dress Arab,pray Arab choose to be Arab. They got their state and well over 80% of the British mandate of Palestine including that given to the Emirate of Jordan where the majority are Palestinians.A piece of history conveniently ignored by you. There is intermingled blood everywhere around the world,you may even have some"klab yahud" DNA yourself To refresh your memory "Palestinian National Covenant (Charter) (Al-Mihaq Al-Watani Al-Filastini) Adopted by the Palestine National Council in 1964, revised in 1968* Text of the Charter: Article 1: Palestine is the homeland of the Arab Palestinian people; it is an indivisible part of the Arab homeland, and the Palestinian people are an integral part of the Arab nation. "

Your post is nonsense. Show me evidence that there was any such divine edict. In 'Daniel' God makes it clear that his bond with the Jews is eternal and forever.

I just found out (wikipedia) that Norway is one of the coalition countries with troops (600) in muslim Afghanistan. When did Afghanistan fire rockets at Norway? How many muslims have the Norwegian forces killed or helped killing in that far away country? Hypocrites.

The Scandinavian nations are not anti-Jewish. But, sadly, you will find anti-Semites in every society. However, there is a strong anti-muslim sentiment in Norway and Denmark.

"1-Ireland is not the issue and is over hopefully." WJ Your out of hand dismissal of the Northern Ireland peace process is telling???. "Besides, the leadership for peace was from the South and the Ameicans and not the North." WJ Wrong again. David trimble was from the north as was Ian Paisley even though he aped the Israeli behaviour of stone walling peace as long as he could. On the other side--ever heard of Austin Currie or John Hume. Me thinks you are out of your league on this debate. Better listen to those who have learned how to make peace than dismiss them as irrevelant.That is assuming you desire peace????. Chris Lintwaithe is one who knows a little about the subject. So do I.

boycott.Dont try to keep all the goddies to yourself. Fact is I cant.t think of anyone else I would be more happy to have boycott me. Except maybe---Victor Paul Harris hardman. Not much hope of either wish coming true.

boycott.Dont try to keep all the goddies to yourself. Fact is I cant.t think of anyone else I would be more happy to have boycott me. Except maybe---Victor Paul Harris hardman. Not much hope of either wish coming true.

Israel should remind Europeans that 'Palestine' was once Christian Byzantium whose citizens were slaughtered forced to convert to Islam. Europe is next on the list...

have been having one sided seminars for the last 60 years. About time the tables were turned. I can recall one sided debates on Usa tv/radio where no Palestinian voice was allowed. James Zogbhi or Edward Said might dare to show up but would be shouted down by the opposing so called middle east expert who ordinarily had never been to the middle East, but had the necessary CAMERA credentials. Not too worry, if they ask difficult question the moderator will "intervene". It is a joke to hear Israeli ministers complaing.

"Indeed, the Jewish People are the natives while the Arabs who arrived with the Muslim Conquest of the 7th century are the usurpers." Can most of the "Jewish People" in Israel today trace their tribal roots to even the 7th century, much less beyond? Truth be told, most "jews" in Israel are of Ashkenazik (Khazarian) descent. Their ancestors were Turko Caucasians who inhabited a vast area in northeastern Europe, nestled between the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. Their Judaistic religion was a form of Talmudism, and would have been virtually unrecognizable to their putative Hebrew ancestors. Some of the relatively few Sephardic jews in Israel today are the only jews who might lay some claim to an ancient Hebrew lineage. But these Sephardics are second class citizen within their own country.

sarcasm instead of argument? lost the thread have you? let me remind you - you suggest that lieberman wanting to evict arabs is the same as an anti-israel academic meeting convened without israel having a voice. confusing. you equate politics with academia. confusing. just think for a moment of your favorite politician wherever it is you come from. i have not heard a politician who is unable to say both one thing and its opposite in the same breath and make both arguments sound plausible. in this country or any other. is that how you regard academia?

When people start to relize that Palestinians are in now way 'indiginous' to the land of Israel then perhaps they will see how rediculous they sound with their retorts.

Well oiled propoganda machine, buddy we couldnt care less what you think of us, it wont keep us alive now will it??? You dont have Hezzbollah with missiles across the border,you dont live in Sderot with Qassams possibly killing and maiming you, You dont have Sons,cousins,brothers serving frontline units in the army, and most importantly you did nothing to protect us in diaspora so Israel is here to stay and be a happy little dolphin and stop crying and learn to swim happily into the sunset. Your friend from Israel :-) Shalom

but we are better human beings, so we allow this, if they criticised China/Libya or any other country of such a similar nature,you and I very well know what would happen :-) As for us IOsraelis we just shrug it off and move on,we cant make them happy by being the good little Jews if we are to survive amidst hostile enemies hell bent on destroying and annihilating us. The difference between diapora and now is, we have our homeland and a powerful military to protect us from real danger, not blabbering clueless lunatics so I dont take them seriously.

israel is destroying judaism by interchangeably equating support for israel as support for jews, and opposition to israel as opposition to judaism. this will be your undoing, israel. keep it up.

Refuseniks came into Israel from the USSR,followed by Ethiopian Jews whom were airlifted,while the world tried to raise money to assist the situation Israel didnt waste time getting her brethen out. Today Israel is a legacy and a mosaic,many of us have cross blooded roots yemenite/Hungarian and Polish/Morroccan,Rumanian/Persian, so indeed this is a prophecy come true. :-)

My family have been living in Tiberias for many generations than we can remember, but guess what we still Jews, and besides who made you G-ds mouth piece anyway??? BTW: It said in the bible which you claim authority over, I will gather thee from exile in all corners of the world, look whats happening and open your eyes, Jews in Europe were been persecuted and nearly annihilated so they came from Europe way before Zionism, the Spanish/Portuguese expulsion,the Cossacks sent a bit more this way, and dont forget the pogroms and Herzl who said Europe is a dangerous place for Jews and those that heeded his advice settled the land when Zionism began,to build an earthly paradise with the Arab inhabitants whom turned against them, then the Holocaust came and many more came in,especially after eastern european pogroms on holocaust survivors,Israel getting partition and independence then Arab/Muslims trying to massacre their Jewish neighbours etc leading too more Jews coming into the(Cont)

A good friend of Norway should tell you:please reread the article and don't take your pose from the top.This article is about the biasing practices of the university in Trondheim, not about Israel.If your country wants to remain a good friend of reason,it should abstain from engaging into one-sided teaching.Nothing in this article demands to oust the far-left historians. The demand is to _admit_also_ other narratives.Don't you see it?For example the narrative of Pappe is that the expulsion of Palestinians had a masterplan,rather than it was carried out as a consequence of war.To my knowledge,this hypothesis does not find a confirmation in the documents-it is his interpretation.The mainstream of Israel historians oppose this view and they have a right_to_say_it.Also I doubt Pappe would mention that some part of Arabs escaped due to calls from Arab Commitee to leave in order to clear field for the invading Arab armies.There are documents for that and the students have _right_ to hear it.

crush free speech???? how assasinating or torturing/killing ppl for expressing their opinions???? Maybe your Arab friends and other dictators around the world, but not us :-)

whose voice is being censored in norway (other than israel's) - please explain?

Israel's well-oiled propaganda machine isn't as successfula s it used to be, so now shutting down critical voices is all it can attempt to do.

I don`t know if anybody here understand any of the scandinavian languages. But if you do and want to know more about the discussions around this seminars, you can go to "The deans page" http://commonweb.ntnu.no/rektors-side/2009/09/forskningsbasert-om-israel-palestina-konflikten/ Most of the post are in norwegan, but there is also some in English. The first post is written by an Israeli researcher living in Trondheim and about 80 to90 % of the posts agree with him. So there is hope for the norwegans after all

This is a seminar by academics who have anti-Israel views. Some are Jewish (self-hating may be), others are not. It is the perogative and democratic right of the academics to present their own views on the Israel/Palestine issue. Is Israel above criticism by divine providence?? Since when is critcizing Israel heresy? Are you going to send the Israel Inquisition after them? The TV images of wartorn Gaza and The Goldstone report are and will always bear witness to Israel's divinely inspired actions. And these academics have all the democratic right to present their anti-Israel views. It is Israel's democratic right to boycott the Norwegian academic institutions, so go ahead if you like!!!!

Israel must accept the natural inclination of the descendants of jew killers to reclaim their traditional past. Israel should concentrate on economic, energy and military independence coupled with the ability to repay properly past slaughters of jews and current support for jew killers. Let those who hijacked the jewish old testament and slughtered jews for 2000 years turn their cheeks. Europe has never paid the proper price for the 2000 years.

Dear Zoe, there are a lot of good Scandinavians. The problem is that left-of-centre Scandinavians perceive Israel as a colonialist bridgehead of the imperialist western world. For them, the cause of the Palestinians is the cause of the downtrodden developing world. If Israelis had been moslem instead of jewish, nobody would have bothered much about Israel. Bear in mind though that many Norwegians support Israel, and most Norwegians would not care about the Middle East at all if it weren't for the media telling us it's the most important conflict in the world.

A good friend tells you when you are doing something wrong to let you know so you can do the right thing. Norway have always been a good friend of Israel, it's only that Israel does not see it because of all the selv delution... Infact I would say that Israel is now going through things like a bullied child, often they also end up being a bully.

The school should simply not deign to repsond to these propagandists. There propaganda barrage across American campuses is no longer working though not by wont of trying. Ilan Pappe is a respected scholar and like Noram Finkelstein, it is theri scholarship which the propagandists are desperately trying to keep out of university forums. They are loosing that battle and they know it so they continue to use depserate tactics. Not worthy of response.

by killing Jewish children are now trying to convince us that they are suffering from Israeli retaliations? How sad....wait a minute.Are they martyrs or victims????? They call themselves glorious shaheeds while lefty supporters call them victims.

R u not an export out of Judaism, of ur own free will , into Christianity? Do u really think that ur emotions can ever be synchonous with Jews? Would it be more honest , on ur part , to refrain from telling Jews what to do?. Maybe u should gettig more involved with Christians where u now belong?

I don't know why anyone should be surprised. When Sweden and Denmark resisted the Nazis, and helped their Jewish citizens, Norway not only capitulated, they gave the word "quisling" to the world.

1-Ireland is not the issue and is over hopefully. Besides, the leadership for peace was from the South and the Ameicans and not the North. 2-"I would like to inform Lieberman that many such meetings occur in Britain on a daily basis."

How nice, to see Norway as the first European country take some step to let the poor students in Norway get to hear some truth about the heinous crimes the Jewish have commited in Palestine during the last 100 years of Zionist Colonialization and Occupation. Let hope France, Sweden and the rest will follow soon.

stop the whineing... Norwegians who hate Israel dont hate israel for it's people.. We hate israel for what you have been doing and are doing against the palestinians..

I think the destruction of all the sukkas erected by kiosks and take-aways in hertzaliya (even those with permission) by order of the mayor is infinitely worse.

Lieberman wants Norwegian observers out of Hebron. For the last three weeks he has mounted a sustained campaign against Norway to attempt to prove that Norway is a den of anti zionists against the occupation. I am campaigning for Lieberman to treat the United Kingdom the same as Norway on the grounds that Norway sends us a Christmas Tree (the one in Trafalgar Square) every year. Surely proof if proof was needed of an anti zionist Anglo-Norwegian plot if there ever was one. Anyone who thinks that a NATO country is a threat to Israel must be one short of a full fuse.

One wonderfull day the people of the modern world will push their goverments to take immediate action against the so called democracy Israel. World wide boycott against Israel ASAP!

Because I see what Israelis do to the Palestinians on my television and I cannot sit there and do nothing. All Israel has to do is withdraw behind the greenline, and I'll start buying Israeli products again. Hell, I'd even turn up in a tin hat with my gun if anyone attacks them after they have done so. But at this moment in time, Israelis deserve everything and anything they get. same as when I was growing up it was white South Africans, and with my Grandad the Nazis. Don't worry after Israel has been sorted out I'll start with whatever is next on the list. Probably Zimbabwe as Mugabe is refusing to die. Bust rest assured the Jewish religion has nothing to do with it, only in the context of a serial disagreement of what actually constitutes Israel, as reconstituted in 1948.

How has it failed in the UK. If anything when you think where we were vis a vis the IRA 15 years ago and the likes of Ken Livingstone keeping communication lines open with Martin McGuinness and Gerry Adams and been vilified for it. And look now? Wouldn't call that a failure of free speech, when the Tories wouldn't even let them speak on television. Would you? In fact I would call that a triumph of commonsense.

About three years ago the Deputy-Ambassador from the Israeli embassy in London went on a tour of academic institutions in the UK to express her government's displeasure at the criticism voiced by academics throughout the land. I don't think it worked and, in fact, the poor woman only embarassed herself with such a pathetic mission. The simple fact is that more and more people are aware of the gross violations being committed by a country that continues to receive massive political, military and financial support by western governments. It is only right and proper that academics speak out, especially when the EU and US continue to actively support such gross violations over decades.

I'll miss your fjords, your majestic snow-capped mountains, your home brew, your folk music and your smiles. We'll be vacationing in Northern Michigan from now on.

so why did israel not invade in the 8 years before when no one (not you either) did anything to stop the rockets? do you think we might have been a bit fed up with your silence? did it take the goldstone report for you and your ilk to realize that war crimes were being committed daily by hamas? did you see the condition shalit - pale, starved, frightened, no access to the red cross? do you now understand the inhumanity of the leaders of the gaza palestinians? have you seen palestinian prisoners in israel getting uni degrees getting fat and getting visitors? are you blind to the truth? the disproportion makes me and every other israeli shudder. but what did you do to avert this catstrophe? you and hamas left us no choice.

in great numbers. Fortunately for the 'all star team'

Can one intelligint person who is not influenced by Islam in Norwayor Sweden please explain to me their logic. Nations drive out thousands, even millions of people and there is no refugee problem. Russia did it, Poland and Czechoslovakia did it. Turkey threw out a million Greeks, and Algeria a million Frenchman.Indonesia threw out the Chinese and no one in Norway raised an eye brow. Nations when victorious on the battlefield dictate peace terms. But when Israel is victorious, it must sue for peace. All these anti-Semites in Norway are ignorant of the fact that when a nation is defeated such as Germany,Japan were they were allowed to recover and thrive but for these ignorant people in Norway Israel must be defeated and totally destroyed. That is how low that nation has stooped. To understand their neighbor Sweden they all kept a tight lip when Hitler was slaughtering Jews.

One has to ask why is Norway singled out for proposing such an "unusual" forum where people of the kind of Pappe are present, while almost weekly BBC has been doing similar event for many years?! Unfortunately, the Norway's sitting of such augures (or such ogers?!) level will more international arena, and people of different political inclinations, will have a field day, even will make the little bourg a focus of tourism. It always ends up in zoo of the kind; the bark is more dissonant than the bite.

for once some logic....but so much hatred directed against one grouping of people....why do you choose to be a part of it ?

a semite speaking hebrew in isreal is in right place, a european speaking english in america is geographically not where he belongs....go learn some logic

chris equates lying corrupt lieberman with lying corrupt norwegian university. i accept your argument chris. luckily there is no academic boycott so we can still hear the voice of moshe zuckerman (or did we israelis bar his door to dissent/descent/decent (zuckerman on german radio: "400,000 palestinians killed in cast elad")? - you've really got me confused now chris)

Tarik of Boston makes pertinent points re the caliber of writing and the level of journalism. Her point by point critique is right on the money. The most glaring war crimes accusations and criticisms of Israel's policies are related to facts alleged investigated and confirmed re military operations undertaken against Lebanon and Gaza . There is no spin which can change the reality of the carnage which was unleashed in both Lebanon and Gaza. The disproportionate response of Israel to the rocket attacks speaks for itself for reasonable people. Imagine if the shoe were on the other foot. Imagine for a moment, the political/ public response of Israel, if the power to injure and kill Israelis on a massive scale had been acted on by the Palestinians. The anti-semitic card is played whenever there are no facts to justify hostile Israeli policies towards Palestinians. Jews for peace who criticize the Zionist agenda are described as self-hating. Zionism and truth don't mesh.

here in the stolen land where goyim slander is legal tender....the difference? norwegians are less likely to do something about it than the racist zionist who carry out ethnic cleansing slander and violence against all goy as a matter daily life

"Free Speech" is a valued part of any democrarcy. It is even more precious and more meaningful when re-inforced by "Open Debate." Too bad it has also failed in Britain?

we don't need no stinkin goyim any way!! that will teach them!!!

As usual, Israel's governing outlaws find shelter in a "refuge of lies", to wax biblical. By and large, global criticisms of Israel are not criticisms of Israel at all, but ciriticisms of the outlaw behaviour of Israel's government, principally its incessant violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention which outlaws ALL Israeli settlements in the Occupied Territories. Any such "concerns" are therefore a flimsy tissue of lies. Go Norway!

live inside israel and have 10% of the seats in parliament (from which they can besmirch the state with parliamentary immunity), live in palestine where they rule themselves, have their own police and from gaza they bomb israel. who, exactly, was ethnically cleansed?

seems inverted. only the antis are saying anything and the truth is being boycotted

Axel. I am sure that many more seminars in the Gaza and West Bank as well as in the surrounding islamic countries could be rather attributed to hate speech than real seminars. And while the heated positions of both sides are to some extent understood due to their conflict, then what the heck does take the university in Norway, the country placed 5000 km away from this conflict, and praised for transparency, to take such one-sided stance? Why do they not allow the historians from both sides to present their arguments? I fail to understand the motives, sorry...

seminars take place in Arab countries presented by persons with outspoken anti-Israel views? Do you imly Norway is an Arab country?

"There's no one on the panel with a neutral view of Israel, let alone anyone to advocate its position," a source from the Foreign Ministry said That's because there is no neutral area, it is what it is. If you're honest you have to find what the Israeli's are doing to the Palestinians, regardless of why, to be despicable. I'll never understand why, if you want people to think differently of you, you just don't stop violating human rights, stealing land, end the siege and committing war crimes. Period.

* What Percentage of Ashkenazi DNA is Semetic? * Why those Jews who embraced Christianity or Islam over the years and who are 100% semites are being persecuted by immigrant Jews? * History and Archeology that you refers to belongs to the natives of the land who now speak Arabic. * It is indeed Religion and the Torah that make Zionists behave like that.

"Just because a vast majority were kicked out by the Roman Empire does not mean historic rights were forfitted." Indians have been living in Boston for thousands of years. Just because a vast majority were kicked out by the palefaces does not mean historic rights were forfeited. I expect you move out as fast as possible and resettle wherever your ancestors came from.

seminars take place in Israel presented by persons with outspoken anti-Arab views?

Elizabeth, the Jews were scattered from the Holy Land as the tangible expression of the Divine Will for their having rejected the New Convenant, established by the Holy Savior at the Last Supper. At that point, they sealed their fate of the loss of their Promised Land. The Jews offend God and Man by having taken by political and military means that which was taken from them by Divine Edict. Thus, the entity that calls itself the State of Israel is illicit and does not enjoy the rights that properly sovereign states enjoy; that includes self-defense because its existence is indefensible for the reasons that I have enumerated above.

The Romans may have expelled the Jews after the Kochba uprising, but many Jews must have remained in the villages. Arab armies moved in later, new rulers took over and converted the Jews to Islam. These people are still there (apart from the 1948 refugees). There is DNA evidence to point to this conclusion. Many, perhaps most, Palestinians are the descendants of Jews. ?In spite of much intermixing, the majority of the [Palestinian] fellahin in Western Palestine are unified in their external appearance and in their origin, and in their veins, without a doubt, flows much Jewish blood?from the Jewish peasants who in the days of the persecutions and terrible oppression had renounced their tradition and their people in order to maintain their attachment and loyalty to the land of the Jews." From the book: Palestine in the Past and the Present, by David ben Gurion

And the norwegian speakers: Nils Butenschon is often used as a middle east "expert" by the media. He is the former leader of the pro-pal organization, the Palestinian front. He is also a former potlitician of the far left socialist party, the same party that calls for a boycott of Israel. Botenschon is also an advocate of a one-state solution. Hilde Henriksen Waage is also often used by MSM as an "expert" on the middle east. She has a clear pro-pal and anti Isreal stance. She has stated that Isreal doesn't really want peace. She also compared Hamas with pious christians in the norwegian christian democratic party. Her opinions are shaping the public unfortiantly. Cecilie Hellestveit. Dont know much about her, but she is qouted to have commented al-Qaradawis call of a new Hollocaust, that "it was out of context". This bunch says a lot of NTNU. This is clearly going to be a one sided, one eyed anti-Israel bashing fest.

Why not saying that Ilan Pappe is Israeli himself ? Is this journalism ?

When you have Pappe on your seminar and you remember he said that truth is not relevant but that it is more important to remember what you want to say then you are conducting a master-class in telling lies. You are allowed to defend it: but remember you are branding yourself.

There are many more historians writing on this subject addressing the issue in the scholarly manner, to mention Yoav Gelber, Efraim Karsh or Matthias Kuentzel at least. Even Benny Morris after long debates and reanalysing the issue has changed his overall conclusions very strongly. Where are they on the list of historians invited to speak to students on this issue? If as talkbacker #5 suggested some banning practices, then who is in reality doing it? Norway, the leader of transparency in Europe? Would the invited scholars discuss the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem's plans to carry out the 'final solution' of Middle East Jews in cooperation with the German regime? or mention the subsequent ethnic cleansing of Arabic-speaking Jews from countries like Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Egypt, Libya? Judging from the list of invited speakers, I doubt...

like the bs about hundreds of thousands dead - then they are all tarred with the same lying brush. They are not looking for truth but to spread the word of hatred prejudice and bigotry. Hello! have you forgotten that they're talking about JOOOOOOOOOs??

Jews have lived continuously in the land of Israel for over 3,000 years. Just because a vast majority were kicked out by the Roman Empire does not mean historic rights were forfitted. Indeed, the Jewish People are the natives while the Arabs who arrived with the Muslim Conquest of the 7th century are the usurpers. It has nothing to do with God or the Bible. Indeed, these Norwegians would be well-served with an archaeology and history lesson.

Unfortunate for you Israel..the whole world isnt deaf..blind and dumb like americans. Neither you should expect them to dance to your tunes as spineless american politicians.

To Poster BenassI. Learn something before you drink the cool-aid from the Israel haters. The west bank is disputed. It was never a country and was part of territory controlled by invaders; ottomans, british, and jordanians. The only time so called east jerusalem had no jews was 1948-1967, when muslim Palestinians (ie jordanians) controlled the territory and expelled them. All it takes is a shovel to dig down and see that Jews were there for thousands of years. There should be a negotiated division yes, but please don't think you making any points with the phony lefty jargon of native owner land expropriation. For extra credit; Tell us where the Hashemite Jordanians came from, and when.

if a group of people over canapes meet to discuss whatever subject they choose to want to discuss. I am sure there are some groups in Israel who meet on a regular basis to discuss the removal of Palestinians from the occupied territories. Lieberman for instance has often expressed this particular view. Yet it is perfectly acceptable for Lieberman to be Foreign Minister of Israel. It is a freedom of speech and a freedom of association issue, nothing to do with Israel, and only of concern to the Norwegian authorities if any laws are broken. I would like to inform Lieberman that many such meetings occur in Britain on a daily basis. In fact people's disdain for Israel and Zionism is openly and publically discussed in the media. The biggest exponant being George Galloway. It is not just Norway, and I would propose that you campaign for an immediate Israeli boycott of Britain. If for nothing else to keep a balance world view. And barring the door to any dissent.

I don't know what was the content of post #1, as it was deleted by the moderator. However Narita, is the university in Norway doing a right thing by only inviting the one side of a conflict? Are these the ways the Universities should follow? Norway has been known in Europe as one of leaders of transparency. Quo vadis? And another comment. It is very easy to ask Israel 'quo vadis' if one sits safely on the very north of the world free from problems of terrorism and hypocrytical enemies who cry for the human rights during the day, but during the night provoke Israelis as much as they can to use army, and torpedo many of israeli peace proposals, just to mention the last Olmert's proposal of 2008 and subsequent Hamas' rockets which ended in war. Very easy from the latitude of Norway to take a mentor's pose, indeed...

This article is written about to the standard of a high school newspaper, with a very obvious slant. First of all, the pejoratives used to describe the scholars at the conference are misleading and unbalanced; Ilan is said to "accuse" Israel of ethnic cleansing, whereas in fact Pappe has addressed this issue in a scholarly manner, documenting an ethnic cleansing, for which he is regarded by serious historians as an important scholar--its not an "accusation". As for the Walt-Mearsheimer book, it got a lot of criticism from many sides, but no "serious scholars" described it as anti-semitic; the only people who made this accusation were non-expert, non-scholars like Alan Dershowitz, who have no expertise in the subject. Finally, the article quotes one Tammi Benjamin, "an American university lecturer" to add depth to the accusations against the conference--who is this person? where does she teach? why should anyone care about her opinion? Haaretz's standards are going way down hill.

zionist are attempting to ban the truth because the truth is anti semetic

They live on oil receipts, sovereign investment funds (dropped over 25% this year), and produce nothing except anti-semtism. Don't see much future for them.

Alfred Nobel - a Swedish citizent, "invented" the dynamite. More education - and less personal opinions, would help you, as well as many of your friends. We are many supportive of Israel, who also take part of a democratic opportunity to write in theses type of Foras. Sometimes, you may hear and read things which you do not approve of, but never forget, that friendship one has to deserve and work for. It is not an automated process. Qua Vadis Israel !

When will Israelis wake up to the fact that they are stealing land, and pushing the natives onto de facto reservations. Gods Chosen People. God Gave us this Land. When a society believes its own propaganda then anything is acceptable, its easy to kill those that are not human. In Nazi Germany, Jews are Rats. In early America, savage heathan Indians. In Palestine, Arab Terrorists. Israel is a criminal State. Solution is Palestine Israel, 2 states, 1 country.

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