Award-winning Israeli author David Grossman has called his country’s military campaign in Gaza a genocide, saying he can no longer avoid using the term.
“How did we reach this point?” the renowned writer and peace activist asked in an interview with Italy’s La Repubblica published Friday. “How did we come to be accused of genocide? Just hearing that word—’genocide’—linked to Israel, to the Jewish people, should be enough to show us that something has gone terribly wrong.”
Grossman admitted he had long resisted using the term. “But now I can’t help it—not after what I’ve read, not after the images I’ve seen, not after speaking with people who were there. This word is like an avalanche: once you say it, it grows, bringing even more destruction and suffering.”
His remarks follow recent accusations by two major Israeli human rights groups that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza, as global concern grows over starvation in the besieged territory.
Grossman, a longtime critic of Israel’s government, told La Repubblica he used the word “with immense pain and a broken heart.”
“Seeing ‘Israel’ and ‘hunger’ linked in newspapers or conversations with friends in Europe—especially given our history, our supposed sensitivity to human suffering, the moral responsibility we’ve always claimed—is devastating,” said Grossman, who won Israel’s top literary prize in 2018 for his decades of work.
“The occupation has corrupted us,” he said. “I’m convinced Israel’s curse began with the 1967 occupation of Palestinian territories. People may be tired of hearing it, but it’s the truth. We’ve grown militarily powerful and succumbed to the temptation of absolute power—the belief we can do anything.”
When asked about France and the UK moving toward recognizing Palestinian statehood, Grossman responded: “I think it’s a good idea, and I don’t understand the hysteria in Israel. Dealing with a real state, with real obligations, rather than a vague entity like the Palestinian Authority, could have benefits. Of course, there must be clear conditions: no weapons, and transparent elections that exclude anyone advocating violence against Israel.”
He remains “desperately committed” to a two-state solution. “It will be complex, and both sides must act with political maturity despite inevitable attacks. There is no other plan.”
