Kenyan school scraps deal, apologizes for causing pain partnering with Israel

Two days after signing a memorandum of understanding with the Jewish state, a private, Christian school in Kenya revoked the agreement and apologized for causing pain and turning its back on the “ongoing humanitarian conflict in the Middle East.”

Laban Ayiro, vice chancellor of Daystar University in Nairobi, posed on Dec. 16 for a smiling picture with Michael Lotem, the Israeli ambassador to Kenya. Clad in a suit and tie, Ayiro holds up a copy of the agreement standing in front of an Israeli flag, as the Israeli envoy, in shirtsleeves and a tie, bears another copy of the memorandum as he stands in front of the Kenyan flag.

Lotem is also smiling, as is his wife, Yahel Margovsky-Lotem, who stands to his left.

But two days later, the school had agreer’s remorse, and Israeli trees were no longer to grow in the Kenyan capital.

Ayiro stated, upon revoking the agreement with the Israeli embassy in Kenya, that “we are not in any way supporting the ongoing humanitarian conflict in the Middle East.”

“Daystar University esteems the sanctity of life and advocates for the peaceful coexistence of humanity,” Ayiro stated. “We acknowledge the pain we have inadvertently caused to members of the public, and sincerely apologize.”

On Dec. 16, the Israeli embassy had announced a “Zion Forest” that “will stand as a monument of friendship between the nations of Israel and Kenya, and in defiance of the global threat of terrorism.”

Lotem and Ayiro “joined forces to launch the Zion Forest at the Athi River campus,” the embassy stated at the time. “This project, initiated by Yahel Margovsky-Lotem and the First Lady Mama Rachel Ruto, will see the planting of over 5,000 indigenous trees on the campus, creating a vibrant green space that will enhance the learning environment for students and enrich the lives of the local community.”