Politics Dept. at Ben-Gurion U. Gets 3 Weeks to Change

Israel's Council for Higher Education has given Ben-Gurion University's political science department three weeks to correct what the council sees as various failings, or to risk being shut down, Haaretz reported. The council has cited a review calling for the department to expand its offerings. But many in the department and many academics all over the world who have signed petitions on the issue believe that the alleged quality concerns are a cover for political concerns. Ben-Gurion's politics department is home to prominent critics of Israeli government policies and right wing groups in Israel have accused the program of being "anti-Zionist."