(JTA) — The Anti-Defamation League reported a 30 percent jump in anti-Israel activity on college campuses this year.
According to a report released Wednesday, over 150 “explicitly ant-Israel programs” have either taken place or are scheduled to take place on American campuses. Last year, the corresponding figure was 105.
The increase follows an identical 30 percent increase reported by the league in the 2014-15 academic year over the previous year.
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The ADL pointed specifically to the growth in boycott campaigns against Israel and a call for a day of action by American Muslims for Palestine, which the league describes as the “leading organization providing anti-Israel training and education” on American campuses.
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“Student groups at a number of campuses are sponsoring a range of programs and initiatives designed with one goal: to isolate, defame and delegitimize Israel,” Jonathan Greenblatt, the ADL’s national director, said in a statement. “Many of these efforts have resulted in increased tension between students and have fostered a hostile atmosphere for pro-Israel and Jewish students. We are particularly concerned by the support these initiatives have received from faculty members.”
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