Ros-Lehtinen: Israel's expulsion from event is 'demonization' tactic

A member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee has stepped into a dispute over a competition co-sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy.

Spain is hosting the Solar Decathlon Europe in June 2010, an international competition in which teams from 20 universities compete by building a model house. A team from Israel's Ariel University Center in the West Bank qualified as one of the finalists in October 2008 and began building the house, but was informed by the Spanish government in September that the Israeli team was being expelled from the competition because the university is located in the "occupied territories."

"It is outrageous that a group of scientists is being barred from participating in an international scientific competition because they are from the West Bank," Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.) said in a Wednesday statement.

"The decision by the Spanish government to expel the Israeli team from Ariel University Center of Samaria represents a dangerous assault on the principles of scientific exchange and academic freedom, and contributes to the demonization of the state of Israel."

Ros-Lehtinen's statement comes as pro-Israel activists stepped up the pressure last week, urging supporters to write legislators and U.S. government agencies to apply pressure to Spain.

"Singling out Israel for special discrimination is anti-Semitic," said the Israel advocacy group StandWithUs, which noted that the West Bank university has both Arab and Israeli students.

The group has also collected more than 6,500 signatures since last week on an online petition that urges the U.S. to withdraw its co-sponsorship of the competition if Spain does not readmit the Ariel team.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center and Anti-Defamation League have also spoken out against Spain's action.

The UK-based Architects and Planners for Justice in Palestine, which supports boycott, divestment and sanctions against Israel, pressured Spain to expel the team.

Spain's Housing Ministry said in a letter to the university: "The fact that your center is actually located in the occupied territories, and being obliged to respect the European Union position in relation to this matter, we are forced to inform you that the continuation of your center in this competition will not be possible."

As host country, Spain has final say over the participants, despite co-sponsorship of the DOE and the European Union.

“I call on mainstream academics and scientists—within Spain and internationally—to reject these derisive attempts to demonize Israel and taint an international educational event with hateful ideology," Ros-Lehtinen said.