Herzliya backs down on Leibowitz street name

Many councilors were outraged at the idea of naming a street after someone who called Israeli soldiers "Judeo-Nazis."

By MIRIAM BULWAR DAVID-HAY
Herzliya has decided it will not name a street after controversial professor Yeshayahu Leibowitz after all, reports www.local.co.il. The city's Names Committee had proposed naming a street after the late professor some months ago, but has now retreated from the idea after a storm of protest. According to the report, many councilors were outraged at the idea of naming a street after someone who called Israeli soldiers "Judeo-Nazis." Leibowitz, who was frequently critical of national policies, made the now-infamous comment after the 1982 Lebanon War. The outspoken scientist and philosopher, who died in 1994 aged 91, also created a wave of antagonism in the early 1990s when he urged Israeli soldiers to refuse to obey orders.