Hundreds of writers call for Gaza ceasefire and aid
More than 300 cultural figures across the United Kingdom and Ireland have signed a letter demanding an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and unrestricted aid to people there facing starvation.
Signatories include bestselling writers such as Ian McEwan, Jeanette Winterson, Zadie Smith and Pico Iyer. Musician Brian Eno and Russell T. Davies, the showrunner of the BBC’s revived Doctor Who, also signed the letter.
The letter begins with a poem by Palestinian poet Hiba Abu Nada, who was killed nearly two years ago in an Israeli airstrike. It asks for an end to what it calls “the collective silence and inaction” that has followed tens of thousands of Palestinian deaths since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas militants killed more than a thousand mostly Israeli civilians in communities close to the Gaza border.
“The government of Israel has renewed its assault on Gaza with unrestrained brutality,” the letter says. “Public statements by Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir openly express genocidal intentions. The use of the words ‘genocide’ or ‘acts of genocide’ to describe what is happening in Gaza is no longer debated by international legal experts or human rights organizations.”
The letter also calls the atrocities committed by Hamas “crimes of war” and “crimes against humanity.” It calls for the release of hostages and denounces antisemitism, anti-Jewish and anti-Israeli prejudice.
“We reject and abhor attacks, hate and violence — in writing, speech and action — against Palestinian, Israeli, and Jewish people in all and any form,” the letter says, which also demands sanctions against the state of Israel if the government does not agree to a ceasefire.
A New Orleans restaurant owner’s Facebook was hacked. It put her business in jeopardy
“Swamp chic” is how Hillary Hanning describes The Little House, the neighborhood bar she owns on New Orleans’ West Bank. It’s the kind of place where a customer can sip […]
To get from experience to emotion, the brain hits ‘sustain’
A study of mice and people looks at how the brain takes an experience, like being cut off in traffic, and responds with an emotion, like road rage.
Darlings on the split screen: ‘Pavements’ explodes the music movie
Movies about musicians love to hit the same melodramatic beats about fame and genius. Important but not quite famous, the '90s indie band Pavement is the exception that unbalances the formula.
COMIC: Don’t panic! 6 strategies to keep you calm in a crisis
In dire situations, stress can make us panic and impair our ability to make lifesaving decisions. Emergency response professionals share the tactics they use to stay cool and collected on the job.
Word of the Week: This four-letter word doesn’t mean what it used to. That’s nice
Like any self-respecting four-letter word, "nice" has many connotations. Centuries ago, "nice" meant someone was ignorant; now it has very different meanings. And that, as they say, is "noice."
How DOGE’s push to amass data could hurt the reliability of future U.S. statistics
DOGE's murky push to amass data at federal agencies could hurt the U.S. government's ability to produce reliable census results, economic indicators and other statistics in the future, experts warn.
