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 step down today, too. (One exception is the Adelaide City Council representative, who will stay on until their term expires on February 2.)

Adler calls the cancellation “no surprise”. She told the Guardian “I am so sorry that this masterclass in poor governance has landed us in this position”.

Last week, the board claimed it “would not be culturally sensitive” to program Abdel-Fattah so soon after the Bondi attacks, due to unspecified “past statements” – though “we do not suggest in any way that Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah’s [sic] or her writings have any connection”. One “statement” being cited now is Abdel-Fattah’s social media comment (which she has confirmed) that Zionists “have no claim or right to cultural safety”.

Today, the board apologised to Abdel-Fattah, who was programmed to discuss her 2025 novel, Discipline, “for how the decision was represented”. It said “this is not about identity or dissent but rather a continuing rapid shift in the national discourse around the breadth of freedom of expression in our nation following Australia’s worst terror attack in history”.

Over the weekend, three board members resigned. On Sunday, Marque Lawyers, acting on behalf of Abdel-Fattah, wrote to Adelaide Festival board chair Tracey Whiting AM, requesting all pertinent information used in the board’s decision for potential litigation purposes. By Monday, Whiting had tendered her resignation as well.

Overall, “more than 180” presenters withdrew from the festival. They included international drawcards Zadie Smith, former New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, M........

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