The Adelaide Festival board lost its chair Tracey Whiting and three members after disinviting Palestinian-Australian author Randa Abdel-Fattah, prompted by concerns from the Jewish Community Council over her past criticisms of Israel and Zionism, linked to the December 14 Bondi Beach antisemitic attack that killed 15.
More than 90 of 124 invited authors, including Yanis Varoufakis and John Lyons, withdrew protesting censorship, while the Australia Institute ended sponsorship and former leaders decried the damage to the event’s reputation.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas supported the decision, highlighting post-attack tensions, as Abdel-Fattah rejected any tie to the violence and her lawyers demanded details on cited statements.
