Hawking Boycotts Israel

Stephen Hawking joins the academic boycott of Israel, shunning a conference in Jerusalem.

Blackhole boycott Israel physics stephen hawking

Cambridge’s world renowned Theoretical physicist Professor Stephen Hawking has this week snubbed an invite from The Israeli Presidential Conference, thus joining an academic boycott of the highly controversial nation.

Prof. Hawking, the former Lucasian Professor of mathematics at Cambridge University, had previously accepted an invite to headline the conference, but later wrote to organisers claiming he’d changed his mind.

Hawking’s personal communication system is provided by Intel, an Israeli company

Claims that Hawking would boycott the event – now in its fifth year – were originally denied by a University spokesperson who cited ill health for his decision not to travel.

However, Hawking then later approved a statement from the British Committee for The Universities of Palestine that said he wished to “respect the boycott, based upon his knowledge of Palestine.” His approval of this message was then later confirmed by the University on Wednesday.

The decision to join the boycott comes four weeks after Hawking accepted the invitation, which was met with a huge backlash from numerous Palestinian rights groups that called for the professor to join their cause.

Hawking’s controversial association with the boycott has been met with both praise and disapproval as the media reacted to the news this morning.

The Guardian hailed the choice as “another victory in the campaign”

Whilst The Jewish Post claimed it “proves even geniuses can be gullible dupes”

Hawking dealt effectively with his other enemy – The Go Compare Man.

Hawking joins the growing list of celebs who have publicly boycotted the middle-eastern nation that includes Bon Jovi, The Klaxons, Annie Lenox, Dustin Hoffman, Elvis Costello and Brian Eno.