A conference hosted by Queen’s Centre for International and Defence Policy (CIDP) drew criticism from protesters over the presentation of a paper co-authored by an academic accused of rape and delivered by an Israeli military scholar.
The two-day conference, titled Reserves at the Ready: Transforming Total Defence Forces in War and Peace, brought together researchers examining military reserve systems in different countries. The few dozen protesters in attendance gathered outside Goodes Hall on July 15, the conference’s second day, to show their dissent with the decision.
The paper at the center of the protest, “Israel’s Reserve Forces: Military and Civilian Capital in a Neoliberal Militia,” was co-authored by Israeli academics Eitan Shamir and Eyal Ben-Ari. It examines how Israel’s reserve military system functioned during the war that began after the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attacks, and argues the model offers lessons for NATO countries reconsidering their own reserve forces.
In interviews with The Kingston-Whig Standard, protesters objected to the paper’s use of Israel’s military operations in Gaza as a case study and its inclusion in the conference amid the ongoing war.
Shamir presented the paper at the conference, while Ben-Ari didn’t attend, CIDP Director Micheal Murphy confirmed in a statement to the Whig-Standard, which was shared with The Journal.
Protesters objected to Ben-Ari’s inclusion as an author because of past allegations of sexual misconduct involving students at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, according to reporting by The Jerusalem Post.
In a statement to The Journal, Heidi Matthews, co-director of the international and transnational law intensive program at York University, said she had not reviewed the paper itself but questioned the broader context in which it was presented.
Matthews said placing a paper on Israel’s reserve forces, alongside presentations examining military systems in countries including Canada, risks treating fundamentally different military contexts as comparable.
She argued Israel’s reserve forces are closely tied to the country’s military occupation of the Palestinian territories.
“It is deeply concerning that a research centre with the mandate to ‘contribute to public debate […] on issues of international peace and security’ would consider the contributions of Israeli military strategists like Shamir as conducive to productive conversations,” she wrote.
Reid Maltby, ArtSci ’86, learned about the workshop through social media and contacted Queen’s and The Journal with concerns about the paper’s authority.
“How is Queen’s platforming this guy?” Maltby said in an interview with The Journal, referring to Ben-Ari.
Ben-Ari, a former sociology and anthropology professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, was investigated by Israeli police in 2008 after students accused him of sexual misconduct, including rape and using his academic authority to pressure students into sexual relationships.
The criminal investigation was closed without charges in 2009 because the alleged conduct fell outside the applicable statute of limitations. Ben-Ari denied the criminal allegations.
The Jerusalem Post said Hebrew University pursued separate disciplinary proceedings. In 2011, its disciplinary court initially suspended Ben-Ari for two years without pay after finding he had maintained improper relationships with students.
An appeals panel later expelled him from the university, overturning the suspension. Reporting by Haaretz said the disciplinary process cleared Ben-Ari of most of the alleged acts, including the allegations classified as sexual offences; while finding he had engaged in improper relationships with three students.
Maltby said Murphy had assured him before the workshop that Ben-Ari would not be present. After learning Shamir would deliver the co-authored paper, Maltby said he remained concerned that the research was included in the program.
“I was shocked to hear it,” he said.
In its statement, Queen’s said organizers issued an open call for contributions in 2025 and selected draft research intended to receive feedback from international experts.
The event was coordinated by CIDP research fellows with administrative support from the center, according to Murphy.
Murphy said the opinions expressed by conference participants didn’t necessarily represent those of CIDP.
Maltby also argued Queen’s decision to include the paper should be considered alongside ongoing calls for the University to divest from companies connected to Israel’s military operations.
“This is unacceptable, but considering how much money Queen’s has invested in the apparatus of genocide, unsurprising,” Maltby said.
Queen’s defended the conference’s inclusion of controversial research on academic freedom grounds.
“Academic freedom protects the right of scholars to pursue, develop, and share knowledge without institutional censorship, including subjects that may be controversial,” Murphy wrote. “As a university, Queen’s supports the open examination of diverse perspectives through research and respectful dialogue.”
In her statement to The Journal, Matthews said universities can protect individual scholars’ academic freedom while also considering the ethical implications of partnerships with institutions they believe are complicit in serious human rights violations.
She said institutional collaborations and individual academic freedom should be treated as separate issues.
Tags
CIDP, Israel, Palestine, Protest
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