Columbia University's Tel Aviv Research Center Sparks Faculty Controversy

Columbia University's plan to open a new center in Tel Aviv has drawn criticism from close to 100 faculty members who say the university should reconsider the move because of Israel's human rights record and ongoing political crisis. Plans to open the center, which were announced on Monday, had been an open secret on campus, but they attracted renewed criticism after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel won re-election this fall with the help of far-right political allies.