Anne Enright, Sally Rooney, Paul Murray among authors calling for end to destruction in Palestine

Many prominent Irish writers, actors, musicians are among the signatories of an Open Letter on the Situation in Palestine, organised by the London Review of Books.

The letter, dated October 18th, 2023, is signed by 600 artists and writers based in the EU, the UK and North America, who are demanding an end to the violence and destruction in Palestine.

It says: “The deliberate killing of civilians is always an atrocity. It is a violation of international law and an outrage against the sanctity of human life. Neither Israel, the occupying power, nor the armed groups of the people under occupation, the Palestinians, can ever be justified in targeting defenceless people. We can only express our grief and heartbreak for the victims of these most recent tragedies, and for their families, both Palestinians and Israelis.”

The letter goes on to say “the unprecedented and indiscriminate violence that is still escalating against the 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza, with the financial and political support of western powers, can and must be brought to an end”.

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Among the Irish signatories are Sally Rooney, Anne Enright, Paul Murray, Kevin Barry, Sara Baume, Ronan Bennett, Niall MacMonagle, Lisa McInerney, Megan Nolan, Elaine Feeney.

Citing UN expert Francesca Albanese’s warning that Israel’s current actions in Gaza constitute a form of ethnic cleansing, and Israeli historian Raz Segal, who described the Gaza situation as a “textbook case of genocide”, the signatories as a first step “call on our governments to demand an immediate ceasefire and the unimpeded admission of humanitarian aid into Gaza. We also demand an end to all arms shipments and military funding, supplies that can only exacerbate the humanitarian catastrophe at hand”.

Among the international signatories of the letter are Naomi Klein, Daisy Lafarge, Patricia Lockwood, Jon McGregor, Maxine Peake, Edwidge Danticat, Gary Younge, Viet Nguyen, and writer and former hostage John McCarthy.

The open letter says the state of Israel is committing grave crimes against humanity by cutting off electricity, food and water, attempting to displace by force over one million Palestinians from their homes and by carrying out continual air strikes against civilians, including those attempting to evacuate. “Its allies, our own governments, are complicit in these crimes.”

The significant number of Irish or Ireland-based artists and writers who signed the letter include Sara Baume, David Butler, June Caldwell, Seamus Cashman, Rachel Connolly, Margaretta D’Arcy, Claire-Louise Bennett, Mia Gallagher, Honor Heffernan, Rita Ann Higgins, Louise Kennedy, Trevor Knight, Neilí Conroy, Anna Carey, Carys Coburn, Annabelle Comyn, Brendan Conroy, Ruaidhri Conroy, June Considine, Mary Coughlan, Ellen Cranitch, Lorcan Cranitch, Catherine Ann Cullen, Caitríona Daly, Raymond Deane, Naoise Dolan, Mike Finn, Nicole Flattery, Sinéad Gleeson, Helen Gregg, Honor Heffernan, Ruth Hegarty, Maeve Higgins, Lilly Higgins, Jose Miguel Jimenez, Emma Jordan, Louise Kennedy, Roisin Kiberd, Trevor Knight, Niall MacMonagle, Aoibhéann McCann, Belinda McKeon, Mark O’Connell, Nuala O’Connor, Liv O’Donoghue, Dee Roycroft, Steve Wall, William Wall.