Stephen Hawking backs boycott of Israeli academics

LONDON (AP) — British physicist Stephen Hawking has dropped plans to attend a major international conference in Israel in June, citing his belief that he should respect a Palestinian call to boycott contacts with Israeli academics.

The University of Cambridge released a statement Wednesday indicating that Hawking had told the Israelis last week that he would not be attending "based on advice from Palestinian academics that he should respect the boycott."

University officials said earlier in the day they had "previously understood" that Hawking's decision was based solely on health concerns — he is 71 and has severe disabilities — but had now been told otherwise by Hawking's office.

The decision means that one of the world's most famous scientists has joined a boycott organized to protest Israel's treatment of Palestinians. He is one of the most prominent figures to endorse the strategy, designed to bring pressure on the Israeli government.

The scientist had earlier agreed to attend the Israeli Presidential Conference, hosted by President Shimon Peres, in late June, but has now changed his mind. The theme of the meeting is "Facing Tomorrow 2013."

Tim Holt, acting communications director at the University of Cambridge, said early in the day that Hawking's decision was based strictly on health concerns. Hawking suffers from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

"For health reasons, his doctors said he should not be flying at the moment so he's decided not to attend," said Holt. "He is 71 years old. He's fine, but he has to be sensible about what he can do."

The university later changed its position after consulting Hawking's office. The change was made after Israeli officials insisted Hawking had cited the boycott when informing organizers that he would not attend.

The Israeli Presidential Conference, now in its fifth year, brings together statesmen and leading experts in various disciplines to discuss ways to address the world's problems. The goal, organizers say, is to identify challenges and propose solutions.

Hawking's endorsement of the boycott prompted an angry response from organizers. Conference Chairman Israel Maimon said Hawking's decision was "unjustifiable and wrong."

"The academic boycott against Israel is in our view outrageous and improper, certainly for someone for whom the spirit of liberty lies at the basis of his human and academic mission," Maimon said, calling the imposition of a boycott incompatible with open, democratic dialogue.

He noted that former world leaders including Bill Clinton, Mikhail Gorbachev and Tony Blair plan to attend the three-day meeting that begins on June 18.

The boycott campaign is led by Palestinians, Israeli leftists and other supporters who oppose Israel's policies toward the Palestinians and are attuned to the power of celebrity in this age.

It has had some success, deterring a string of famous entertainers from performing. Elvis Costello and the Pixies canceled concerts, as well as the British dance band Klaxon and the Gorillaz Sound System. Israel has also faced occasional boycotts of its academics, unions and in some cases commercial products.

Hawking's decision was hailed by the British Committee for the Universities of Palestine as support for its goal of severing academics' connections with Israel.

"This is his independent decision to respect the boycott, based upon his knowledge of Palestine, and on the unanimous advice of his own academic contacts there," the committee said on its website.

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Heller reported from Jerusalem.

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Karl Rove Suggests Stephen Colbert May Need 'Anger Management'

Karl Rove, Fox News contributor and former deputy chief of staff for President George W. Bush, says of comedian-satirist Stephen Colbert's interactions with Rove's bespectacled canned-ham likeness, "Ham Rove," "He's an entertainer so he gets to be funny and exaggerate things and so forth. Though I have to admit, when he took out the knife and started stabbing it, I think he might need a little bit of professional counseling on his anger management issues."

"I don't know whether that was working out his inner feelings, or encouraging maybe someone to maybe mimic him or just sort of being funny. But there was a little bit of anxiety in his stabs there."

Before joining the "This Week" roundtable, Rove sat down with ABC News' Benjamin Bell, answering a variety of viewer questions from Facebook, including the lighthearted about "Ham Rove" and George W. Bush's paintings, his career and his thoughts on the Iraq War 10 years later.

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Q: What do you think of President Bush's paintings?

A: "I have one. I have one of the original, first forty-threes. He painted my wife and our dogs. And he's pretty good. Particularly, I called him when Barney died. And he'd painted a picture of Barney, which I thought was really, you know, clearly from the heart."

Q: In your opinion, what was the greatest accomplishment of the Bush administration?

A: "Well, if you had to pick one, it would obviously be in the aftermath of 9/11, keeping America safe and foiling efforts to follow on the attack of 9/11 with others."

Q: When you think about the Iraq War, 10 years after the invasion, do you have any regrets?

A: "Sure, of course. Looking at the end of any conflict, I bet people look back and clearly have regret about the loss of life. And clearly, everything in hindsight, you know, becomes clear as to what you should have done or shouldn't have done. Every conflict is like that.

"But the world is a safer place with Saddam Hussein gone. If he were not removed from power, can you imagine what the Middle East would look like today with Saddam Hussein, who was successfully undermining the United Nations by ignoring the agreements he made in the aftermath of the first Gulf War, undermining the oil for sanctions regime, had every confidence that he could ultimately be free of them, and he would be emboldened with, you know, a fifth of the world's oil supplies and the capacity to reinstitute his dangerous weapons programs. And if he were not alive, the country would be run by one of his sadistic sons, Uday or Qusay. And can you imagine how difficult that would make that part of the world? In retrospect, sure, lots of regrets. Lots of things you would like to have done differently. But the world is a better place with Saddam Hussein gone."

Q: Do you consider Chief Justice Roberts to be a disappointment?

A: "Well, in one sense, yeah, you wish he had gone on the other side and been 5-4 declaring [President Obama's health care law] unconstitutional. On the other hand, when you appoint someone, you appoint somebody because of their character, their convictions, their abilities. And not because you have a belief, a confidence, in a foreordained outcome in any given decision.

"You appoint them for their leadership and their legal acumen. And you have to look at the long. .. narrative of his record on the court, which is only now beginning. Had I wish he had acted differently in it? Yes, but on the other hand, he's been a strong leader who has restored public confidence in the court and has led the court to make some important decisions."

Lightning Round:

Q: iPhone or Blackberry?

A: "iPhone, of course."

Q: Favorite movie of the year?

A: "It's a tie, 'Skyfall' and 'Lincoln.' I enjoyed both of them immensely. Best Bond movie ever. And a really fine movie on 'Lincoln.'"

Q: Comfort food?

A: "Fried chicken."

Like "This Week" on Facebook here. You can also follow the show on Twitter here.

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