In the tenth episode of Current Literary Affairs, journalist and writer Naeeda Aurangzeb is in conversation with Atef Abu Saif, Palestinian writer, political scientist, and former Minister of Culture of the Palestinian Authority. They talk about writing as a form of resistance and his motivation to continue telling the stories of Gazans. Writer Rashid Novaire will provide an introduction to Abu Saif’s work. This conversation was recorded in front of a live audience at De Nieuwe Liefde, on June 13th 2025.

Atef Abu Saif (1973) is a Palestinian writer, political scientist, and former Minister of Culture of the Palestinian Authority. He was born in the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza and has published several novels, including A Suspended Life, which was nominated for the World Prize for Arab Fiction in 2015. His poignant diaries from Gaza have been published in outlets such as The New York Times and The Nation. They are collected in Don’t Look Left: A Diary of Genocide (2024). His earlier Gaza diaries were published as The Drone Eats Me (2015).

Foto: Merlijn Doomernik

Naeeda Aurangzeb (1974) is a journalist and radio and television presenter. For NTR, she hosted De halve maan and co-hosted Bureau Buitenland at NPO. She also worked as a reporter on Radio 1 for Nieuws en Co. Previously, she published Verdreven Palestijnen (Displaced Palestinians) and produced the documentaries Met het gezicht naar het Oosten (Facing East) and Kerstnacht Bethlehem (Christmas Night Bethlehem). She lived and worked for several years in Tel Aviv-Jerusalem and the United States. In 2021, she wrote Hé lekker ding. 365 dagen vrouw en 365 dagen Nederlander (Hey Gorgeous. 365 Days a Woman and 365 Days a Dutch Citizen), reflecting on her experiences as a woman and a person of color.

Rashid Novaire (1979) began writing at a young age and won the El Hizjra Literature Prize in 2013. He has written several novels, including The Song of the Skate, Origin, and Just Say We’re Not Home. Novaire has been nominated twice for the Libris Literature Prize. His new novel, 28 Letters, will be published by Ambo|Anthos in January 2026. He has also written for theater, including Bellevue lunch theater and the Bavarian State Theater. During the lecture tour young.euro.connect, he met Atef Abu Saif and continued to follow his work.