Stephen Hawking boycotts Israeli academic conference, Guardian reports - Jewish World News - Israel News | Haaretz Daily Newspaper
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The world-renowned physicist Stephen Hawking joined the academic boycott of Israel when he decided to pull out of a Jerusalem conference hosted by President Shimon Peres in protest of Israel’s treatment of Palestinians, British daily The Guardian reported Tuesday.
According the Guardian, Hawking, 71, told Peres that he will not participate in in the annual “Facing Tomorrow” conference in June after consultation with his Palestinian colleagues, and “based on his knowledge of Palestine.”
The conference, which is in its fifth year, gathers world leaders and intellectuals for public discussions on a variety of subjects.
Hawking last visited Israel in 2006 at the invitation of the British Embassy.
Hawking, who has ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s disease, cannot move his body and uses a wheelchair. He communicates through a computerized voice system.
The Guardian reported that although Hawking initially announced his participation in the conference, he received a deluge of appeals to refrain from attending in the last 4 weeks.