We don’t always agree with the paper of record’s coverage of the Mid-East – and there’s much to disagree with even in the Times editorial “Malicious Boycotts” but kudos to the Times editorial page for their public outrage over recent British unions boycotting Israel.

Asks the Times, who trusts the journalist that has so blatantly taken sides in a conflict (the National Union of Journalists issued an April boycott on Israeli goods) and how can a scholar be trusted to dispassionately teach if they choose a colleague based not on their character or training but their political belief (University and College Union boycotts contacts and exchanges with Israeli academic institutions)?

Moreover, says the Times, this smacks of hypocrisy when the only solidarity these unions show with any other of the oppressed or suffering peoples in the wide, wide world (notes the Times – “there are plenty”) is the Palestinians.

_