In Defense of Palestinian Civil Society

A conversation with Ubai Aboudi, director of the Bisan Center in Ramallah, and Sahar Francis of Addameer, two of the six Palestinian civil society organizations labeled “terrorist” by the Israeli government.

On Friday October 22nd, Israel’s Ministry of Defense, in a troubling decision, designated six prominent Palestinian human rights organizations as “terrorist organizations.” This move has sent shockwaves across Palestinian civil society and raised alarms throughout the international community. The decision was made based on so-called “secret evidence” that is essentially impossible to verify. Opposition to the extremely alarming decision has been remarkable, including among Israeli civil society and academics.

Among the organizations included in this designation, is the Bisan Center for Research and Development, one of Scientists for Palestine main partners in Palestine. The Bisan Center has many international partners and an exemplary reputation among scholars and educators. The other five organizations are Addameer, Al-Haq, Defense for Children International-Palestine, The Union of Agricultural Work Committees, and The Union of Palestinian Women’s Committees.

• Moderated by Mario Martone, co-founder of Scientists for Palestine.
• Ubai Aboudi from the Bisan Center and Sahar Francis from Addameer. As directors of some of these organizations, they discuss the consequences of this decision.
• Anat Matar is an Israeli professor and long term activist for Palestinian rights, who discusses the response of Israeli academia.

We believe that as member of the international scientific and academic community, we must respond firmly to this unprecedented attack to academic freedom. Support the campaign #StandWithThe6.

Recorded 6 November 2021, by Scientists4Palestine.