During Berlin Science Week, Prof. Nili Cohen, former president of the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities, participated in a conference titled "POWER AND PIETY: RELIGION, POLITICS, AND THE UNIVERSITY." The conference was initiated by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences, the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research and Development (GIF), and the Israeli Embassy in Germany.

 

Other lecturers at the conference included Prof. Christoph Markschies, President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy, Prof. Menahem Ben-Sasson, President of the Hebrew University in Jerusalem, and Prof. Gudrun Krämer, member of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy. Also, Israel's ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, spoke. After the lectures, a panel discussion took place on academic theology studies.

In response to the massacre which took place in Israel on October 7, the conference addressed the commitment of universities worldwide to serve as a moral conscience, unequivocally condemning the atrocities committed by Hamas. Prof. Markschies expressed profound shock at the actions of Hamas and the rise of antisemitism globally as well as his unwavering support for the State of Israel.

Prof. Nili Cohen, former president of the Israel Academy