The conspicuous silence of NTNU rector Digernes

NTNU is making regular appearances in the newspapers these days. The Norwegian Press Agency (NTB) has written an article on the issue which has been published in both Verdens Gang (Norway’s largest daily) and Dagbladet. Foreign newspapers are picking up as well these days. Here, from Jpost, starting with a bit of the basics:

Academics in Israel and worldwide are fighting against a proposed academic boycott against Israel by the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Norway.

It then provides with a line on how the signatories to the call for boycott refuse to elaborate on why:

Those signatories that could be reached refused to comment on their reasons for signing the letter.

This is just a little bit odd. Why do the signatories to the call for boycott refuse to tell us why they have done so?  And as for rector Digernes, he is just as unwilling to answer any questions. In fact, he refuses to speak to Jpost at all, which tells us:

Digernes could not be reached for comment.

This reminds us of how rector Digernes was unavailable for comment for the Haaretz article as well. He was willing to speak to Norwegian Dagbladet, to whom he said that he was not in favor of boycott. Yet this does not harmonize with his enthusiastic endorsement of the current seminar series on Israel, which happens to have been organized by the very same NTNU academics who are behind the boycott call.