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British-Pakistani author Kamila Shamsie is set to moderate a talk today titled ‘Writing Palestine’, featuring four Palestinian writers, at Georgetown University in Qatar for the Palestine Festival of Literature (PalFest).

The panel consists of author and poet Mohammed El-Kurd (Perfect Victims and Rifqa), and authors Ibtisam Azem (The Book of Disappearance) and Ahmed AlNaouq (We Are Not Numbers).

Taking to her Instagram account, Shamsie urged those in Doha to attend, adding that no live streaming would be available.

“It should be remarkable, given the lineup,” she said.

A renowned author herself, Shamsie has won numerous accolades for her work, both in Pakistan and internationally. In 2019, the German city of Dortmund rescinded its decision to award Kamila Shamsie the Nelly Sachs Prize (named after a Jewish poet and Nobel Laureate), citing her support for the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Shamsie condemned the decision in her response and said it was a “matter of outrage that the BDS movement that campaigns against the government of Israel for its acts of discrimination and brutality against Palestinians should be held up as something shameful and unjust”.

Established in 2008, PalFest is a cultural initiative committed to the creation of language and ideas for dismantling colonialism in the 21st century. Historically, the festival would invite international and Palestinian authors for free, public events in cities across Palestine.

Recently, the festival has held sporadic events throughout the year in different cities across the globe. PalFest also offers a curated subscription that delivers books and bespoke extras related to Palestine.