ByAcademics in Italy held the country’s first scholarly discussions about boycott, divestment and sanctions measures on Israel in support of Palestinian rights — in spite of attempts at censorship during a major Middle East studies conference in Sicily.A proposal for a boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) panel discussion was accepted last fall by the scientific committee for the annual conference of the Italian Society for Middle Eastern Studies (SeSaMO), which took place on 17-19 March.
However, just weeks before it was to take place, Giacomo Pignataro, president of the University of Catania, which was hosting the conference, requested that the BDS panel be removed from the official program, threatening to pull university support.




