Picturehouse and Curzon cinemas have already refused to host the festival. The festival has also been refused at the Cines Girona, Barcelona. We believe there is no moral or ethical justification for a British cultural venue to do ‘business as usual’ with any organisation that is sponsored by the Israeli regime while it intensifies its genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza.
To the Trustees of the Phoenix Cinema, Everyman Cinemas Hampstead and Barnet, and JW3
We write as filmmakers, arts workers, London and Brighton residents and audiences who are ardent supporters of independent cinema.
We are disturbed and horrified to find that Seret, the UK-Israeli Film Festival is being held at several cinemas, co-sponsored by the Israeli government.
Amnesty International has designated Israel as a regime of apartheid against the Palestinian people. In February 2024, the International Court of Justice ruled that accusations of genocide of the Palestinian people in Gaza were “plausible”.
In light of the gravity of the charges against the Israeli state, and the scale of suffering being inflicted on millions of Palestinians, particularly but not limited to Gaza, we strongly urge you to cancel the forthcoming Seret events.
Seret is part of a broader artwashing strategy by the Israel apartheid state that uses culture to whitewash and cover up its crimes against the Palestinian people.
Palestinian filmmakers and culture workers have asked that their international colleagues commit to the principle of ‘do no harm’. They are urgently asking us to end our complicity with a decades-long system of settler-colonialism and the institutions that perpetuate it, as a meaningful contribution to their struggle for freedom.This, we firmly believe, is a profound ethical duty, and a legal obligation.
Picturehouse and Curzon cinemas have already refused to host the festival. The festival has also been refused at the Cines Girona, Barcelona. We believe there is no moral or ethical justification for a British cultural venue to do ‘business as usual’ with any organisation that is sponsored by the Israeli regime while it intensifies its genocide against 2.3 million Palestinians in Gaza.
We ask you to stand on the side of humanity, against apartheid and genocide, by canceling your Israel-sponsored film screenings and committing to not host the UK-Israeli Film Festival in future.
Yours sincerely