Left-wing Jewish-American writer Peter Beinart apologized on Wednesday for speaking at Tel Aviv University and ignoring pleas by anti-Israel activists to boycott the venue.
“By speaking earlier this week at Tel Aviv University, I made a serious mistake,” wrote Beinart, who in 2020 declared that he wants the Palestinian-Israeli conflict to end with a one-state solution without Jewish national sovereignty, on X. He ended his post with the words: “This was a failure of judgment. I am sorry.
“I really wanted to speak to Israelis,” wrote Beinart, who is a frequent contributor to The New York Times and other major publications. “I’ve hoped for more conversations with Israelis, to explain why I believe Israel has committed genocide in Gaza and why I believe Jewish supremacy is fundamentally wrong.”
However, Beinart said, “I let my desire for that conversation override my solidarity with Palestinians, who in the face of ethnic cleansing, apartheid and genocide have asked the world boycott Israeli institutions that are complicit in their oppression.”
He wrote that, “As Noura Erakat and others have pointed out, there are ways for me to talk to Israelis without violating BDS guidelines.”
Erakat is a Rutgers University international studies lecturer. She accused Israel of committing a genocide on Oct. 13, 2023, before Israel moved any significant forces into the Gaza Strip. Born in California in 1980, her uncle was the late PLO leader Saeb Erekat.
Beinart, 54, faced passionate condemnations in anti-Israel circles for his appearance Tuesday at Tel Aviv University. He did not say what made him realize that the engagement was a “mistake.”
On Tuesday, Erakat tweeted at Beinart a reply post that had 45,000 views, reading: “Why not speak to this audience outside of an institution that you describe as complicit? You realize your logic is a green light for others to sidestep the BDS call based on their own judgment.”
His apology prompted scorn from prominent conservatives, including American comedian, pundit and writer Dave Rubin. “Truly the most sniveling, pathetic loser on this entire platform,” Rubin, who is also Jewish, tweeted about Beinart’s apology.
David Collier, a British independent investigative journalist, wrote: “There is nothing left of Beinart now. His entire identity is shaped by a need to please those who hate Jews.”
Beinart’s apology and acceptance of “BDS guidelines” mark his progress on an ideological trajectory toward an anti-Israel radicalism that has been popularized in recent years on the American left.
