Israeli writers condemn London Review of Books for condemning Israel

The Hebrew Writers Association in Israel, representing approximately 800 writers, poets, literary critics, and scholars, said on Wednesday that it condemns the London Review of Books for its failure to respond to a formal letter sent after the journal published a letter condemning Israel that failed to mention the October 7 massacre.

On October 18, the London Review of Books published a letter signed by hundreds of writers and artists from the United Kingdom, North America, and other English-speaking countries. The letter failed to make any mention of the Hamas massacre of 1,400 people in Israel and the kidnapping of 240 hostages from Israel while featuring phrases such as, “The State of Israel commits serious crimes against humanity” and accusing Israel of “genocide.” The signatories included Irish novelist Sally Rooney, who made headlines two years ago when she refused to allow an Israeli publisher to translate her most recent book into Hebrew, and Jewish-American author Jonathan Lethem.

Hebrew Writers Association in Israel responded in a letter

The Hebrew Writers Association in Israel responded in a letter on October 26, highlighting the fact that the Israel-Hamas war broke out in response to the massacre and refuting various points made in the letter published by the journal. But as of November 1, it has not even acknowledged receiving the letter.

“I’m shocked,” said Dr. Shlomit Aharoni Lir, chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the Hebrew Writers Association. “It’s like you’re bleeding and no one sees you.”

Lir understands that “artists, writers, and intellectuals can be pro-Palestinian, but after such a massacre, how can you not even mention it?”

In addition to sending their response to the London Review’s editor, the Hebrew Writers’ letter was posted on Facebook and Twitter. “They [the editors of London Review] must have heard about it. Even if their response is that they are not going to publish it, we expected to hear from them. A basic tenet of journalism is that you allow someone to respond. It’s common decency,” Lir said.

The Hebrew Writers Association uploaded its open letter to the Internet, allowing individuals to sign and express their solidarity with the protest. This online effort experienced a cyberattack, which prevented the public from reading the letter at first, but the organization then released a link to a Google Document version.

The Hebrew Writers Association letter was signed by dozens of its members, including internationally known novelist Dorit Rabinyan (author of All the Rivers) and poet Ilan Sheinfeld. It expressed “utter disappointment” in the letter published in the London Review, saying: “This is the horrifying reality. On October 7, 2023, Hamas deliberately butchered, murdered, raped, tortured, and kidnapped hundreds and hundreds of Israeli civilians including babies, children, Holocaust survivors and critically ill. Israel is still bleeding. We are still counting the dead, identifying mutilated bodies. Instead of condemning these horrific crimes against humanity...  these writers have propagated a disgraceful misinformation and reversal of reality.

“The Association of Hebrew Writers in Israel calls upon humanitarians to reject with disgust this heartless and false narrative. We implore you to stand with Israel, denounce the heinous crimes committed by Hamas, and join us in demanding the immediate release of all hostages.

The Israeli Writers Guild published a similar letter last week, criticizing the failure of its US counterpart, the Writers Guild of America, to condemn the October 7 massacre.