London: Nearly 380 prominent writers from the United Kingdom and Ireland have signed a powerful open letter demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, describing Israel’s actions as a “genocide” and calling for urgent global intervention.
Among the signatories are internationally acclaimed authors Zadie Smith, Ian McEwan, and Jeanette Winterson, who collectively urged the international community “to join us in ending our collective silence and inaction in the face of horror.”
The letter makes an emphatic plea for an immediate end to the violence, the unrestricted delivery of food and medical aid to the besieged Gaza Strip, and the imposition of sanctions on Israel.
“This genocide implicates us all,” the letter concludes. “We bear witness to the crimes of genocide, and we refuse to approve them by our silence.”
This collective voice from the literary community adds to a growing international outcry. Just a day earlier, more than 300 French-language writers, including Nobel laureates Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio and Annie Ernaux, signed a similar open letter condemning Israel’s actions in Gaza.
The literary statements follow another critical move in the UK, where over 800 legal experts, including former senior judges, sent a formal letter to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. They called for immediate sanctions on Israel, warning that “urgent and decisive action is required to avert the destruction of the Palestinian people of Gaza.”
As Israel's military campaign in Gaza continues to intensify — with a death toll now exceeding 61,000, according to Gaza authorities — these letters mark a sharp escalation in public condemnation from influential figures across the UK, Ireland, and Europe.
