A list of 380 prolific British writers, including Ian McEwan, Zadie Smith, George Monbiot, and Frank Cottrell-Boyce, wrote an open letter demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza on Tuesday night.
“The government of Israel has renewed its assault on Gaza with unrestrained brutality,” the letter said, adding that “public statements by Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir openly express genocidal intentions.”
The writers cited human rights organizations such as Amnesty International, Médecins Sans Frontières, and Human Rights Watch to say that “the use of the word ‘genocide’ to describe what is happening in Gaza is no longer debated.”
'Genocide' is not a slogan
“The term ‘genocide’ is not a slogan,” the letter continued.
“It carries legal, political, and moral responsibilities. Just as it is true to call the atrocities committed by Hamas against innocent civilians on 7 October 2023 crimes of war and crimes against humanity, so today it is true to name the attack on the people of Gaza an atrocity of genocide, with crimes of war and crimes against humanity committed daily by the Israeli Defense Forces at the command of the government of the State of Israel.”
The writers added that they refuse to be bystander-approvers, but that “in taking this stand, we assert without reservation our absolute opposition to and loathing of antisemitism of anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli prejudice.”
As such, they demanded immediate unrestricted distribution of food and medical aid throughout Gaza by the UN; sanctions on the State of Israel if the Israeli government does not heed this call; and a ceasefire that guarantees safety and justice for all Palestinians, the release of all Israeli hostages, and the release of the thousands of Palestinian prisoners arbitrarily held in Israeli jails.
“This genocide implicates us all,” the letter concluded. “We bear witness to the crimes of genocide, and we refuse to approve them by our silence.”
The letter is based on the original by Karim Kattan, which was published in the French outlet Libération on Monday and signed by 300 French authors. The French version was signed by authors including Leïla Slimani, JMG Le Clézio, Virginie Despentes, and Mohamed Mbougar Sarr.
Additionally, on Monday, over 800 legal professionals signed an open letter to UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, asking the government to impose sanctions on Israel due to the war in Gaza.
The 34-page letter featured signatures from two former Supreme Court justices, Lord Jonathan Sumption and Lord Nicholas Wilson, over 70 King’s Counsel, and hundreds of barristers, solicitors, and others.