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The Latest Breaking News from Randa AbdelFattah

‘Masterclass in poor governance’: what was the board’s role in the end of Adelaide Writers Week?

This afternoon, Adelaide Writers Week was cancelled for 2026 – less than a week after Palestinian-Australian writer Randa Abdel-Fattah was disinvited by the Adelaide Festival board. This came despite the “strongest opposition” from Writers Week director Louise Adler, who resigned this morning. The board has announced its remaining members will…

The Conversation

Afternoon Update: Adelaide writers’ week cancelled; Rudd calls time as US ambassador a year early; and DiCaprio’s viral moment

The writers’ week director Louise Adler also quit in protest of the decision to disinvite Randa Abdel-Fattah

The Guardian - AU

Adelaide Writers’ Festival Cancelled & Apology Issued To Randa Abdel-Fattah

"This is a deeply regrettable outcome."

Pedestrian.tv

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Adelaide writers’ week 2026 cancelled as board apologises to Randa Abdel-Fattah for ‘how decision was represented’

Almost all remaining festival board members have resigned after backlash to decision to disinvite the Palestinian Australian author

The Guardian - AU

Festival canned after author's dumping sparks backlash

A leading writers' festival has collapsed under the weight of backlash over the dumping of a Palestinian-Australian novelist from its program.

AAP

I cannot be party to silencing writers, which is why I am resigning as director of Adelaide writers’ week

Cancelling the Australian Palestinian author Randa Abdel-Fattah weakens freedom of speech and is the harbinger of a less free nation

The Guardian - AU

Louise Adler resigns as director of Adelaide writers’ week

Exclusive: Writing for Guardian Australia, Adler says she ‘cannot be party to silencing writers’ after Adelaide festival board cancelled Randa Abdel-Fattah’s invitation to appear

The Guardian - AU

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Major arts festival in doubt after Jacinda Ardern joins mass boycott over axing of Palestinian writer

More than 70 prominent figures are boycotting the Adelaide Festival for dropping Palestinian-Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah in the wake of the Bondi attack

The Independent UK

Jacinda Ardern pulls out of Adelaide writers’ week as fallout over Randa Abdel-Fattah’s axing continues

Ructions within festival board over Palestinian-Australian academic’s inclusion began in October, email reveals

The Guardian - AU

Fourth Adelaide Festival Board Member Resigns Over Randa Abdel-Fattah Backlash

Almost 50 authors have pulled out of the festival program over its decision to remove Palestinian-Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah from the line-up.

Pedestrian.tv

Festival dumping calculated, says Palestinian author

Dumped author Randa Abdel-Fattah says attempts to police speech will backfire as more than 100 writers quit a besieged literary festival in solidarity.

AAP

If we silence voices we don’t agree with, we’re doing the work of extremists for them

I do not need to share Randa Abdel-Fattah’s views to believe that removing her is wrong. This is why I’ve withdrawn from Adelaide writers’ week

The Guardian - AU

Morning Mail: costs of Victoria bushfires hit hard; Iran protests death toll soars; Adelaide festival turmoil continues

Hundreds of homes and businesses lost in Victoria fires; US weighs up Iran intervention; leadership crisis at Adelaide festival

The Guardian - AU

Three board members and board chair resign from Adelaide festival as Randa Abdel-Fattah sends legal notice

Resignations follow withdrawal of more than 70 participants in Adelaide writers’ week after Palestinian Australian author disinvited

The Guardian - AU

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AAP

'Foolish': Mabo historian pans festival axing of author

A pre-eminent Australian historian has joined a growing list of nearly 100 speakers pulling out of a writers' festival after it dumped a pro-Palestine academic.

The Guardian - AU

Adelaide festival did not dump Jewish columnist from 2024 program despite request from Randa Abdel-Fattah and others

Palestinian academic rejects accusations of hypocrisy, saying board resisted attempts to remove Thomas Friedman, while cancelling her invitation this year

The Guardian - AU

SA premier denies pressuring Adelaide festival to drop Randa Abdel-Fattah

Letter from 11 South Australian cultural leaders labels cancellation of Palestinian-Australian’s participation a ‘grave mistake’ which brought festival into disrepute

AAP

Writers' mass exodus after festival bans Palestinian

Dozens of authors have withdrawn from a major Australian festival over a decision to remove its only Palestinian writer because of "cultural sensitivities".

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The Conversation

As authors abandon Adelaide Writers’ Week after cancelling of Randa Abdel-Fattah, is free speech in tatters?

The decision by the Adelaide Festival Board to exclude Palestinian Australian author and academic Randa Abdel-Fattah from Adelaide Writers’ Week on the grounds of “cultural sensitivity” is based on a dangerously broad and vague criterion for suppressing free speech.

The Guardian - AU

Almost 50 writers boycott Adelaide festival after it dumps pro-Palestine academic Randa Abdel-Fattah

Helen Garner and Miles Franklin winner Michelle de Kretser among 47 people who have pulled out of annual writers’ festival to protest Abdel-Fattah’s axing

AAP

Writers' festival drops Palestinian-Australian author

The board of a major festival has cancelled the appearance of a prominent Palestinian author citing 'cultural sensitivity' following the Bondi terror attack.

The Guardian - AU

Adelaide festival dumps prominent academic Randa Abdel-Fattah over ‘cultural sensitivity’ concerns after Bondi attack

Abdel-Fattah accuses the board of ‘blatant and shameless’ anti-Palestinian racism and censorship, as other authors pull out in solidarity

The Guardian - AU

Pro-Palestine academic Randa Abdel-Fattah cleared of wrongdoing after investigation into research grant

A suspension on the grant was lifted earlier this month, after a 10-month investigation into potential conflicts of interest

The Guardian - AU

‘I have no interest in the white gaze any more’: Randa Abdel-Fattah on Gaza, boycotts and her new novel

Discipline follows a journalist and an academic navigating censorship in the wake of Israel’s war on Gaza – an issue the author is no stranger to herself

Pedestrian.tv

Bendigo Writers Festival Faced A Mass Walkout Over Its Code Of Conduct, Here’s What Happened

Bendigo Writers Festival was meant to kick off this month. Instead, it found itself at the centre of mass withdrawals.

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