Sally Rooney agrees to Hebrew book translation with independent publisher

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More than four years after rejecting a Hebrew translation offer for Beautiful World, Where Are You, Sally Rooney has announced that Intermezzo will be translated with an independent Israeli publisher that meets the conditions of the BDS movement. The Palestinian Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions Movement is a global campaign designed to “end international support for Israel’s oppression of Palestinians”. Israeli officials have dismissed it as an antisemitic movement, while supporters say it is a legitimate nonviolent form of protest. November Books has been chosen because it does not operate in Israeli settlements or receive funding from the Israeli state. Rooney told the Guardian that she was “never boycotting the Hebrew language or any language”. She has previously said that she cannot visit the UK without risking arrest due to her support of Palestine Action, which was proscribed as a terrorist organisation last year.