Juliette Binoche, Marion Cotillard and Jacques Audiard are among 500 French filmmakers who have signed an open letter in support of a silent march for peace in Paris this Sunday.
The initiative was launched in response to the conflict between Israel and Hamas and its ongoing resonance around the world and is led by the recently founded collective Une Autre Voix (Another Voice).
“This fratricidal war affects us all, and regardless of our reasons or affinities on either side of the wall, we want it to end and for both peoples to finally live in peace,” the letter reads.
“That is why we are organizing a silent, united, humanistic and peaceful march that will start with a single long white flag. No political claims or slogans. White flags and white handkerchiefs are welcome.”
The Belgian-Moroccan actress Lubna Azabal (The blue kafta, Tel Aviv is burning) is president of the collective Une Autre Voix, which also includes the French actress and director Julie Gayet and screenwriter Baya Kasmi, as well as the Lebanese-Canadian playwright Wajdi Mouawad (Incendia) between its shelves.
Other signatories of the letter include Mona Achache, Sofia Alaoui, Jeanne Balibar, Emmanuelle Bercot, Sami Bouajila, Laure Calamy, François Cluzet, Abdel Raouf Dafri, Grégory Gadebois, Michel Hazanavicious, Tewfik Jallab, Olga Kurylenko, Alexandra Lamy and Fabrice de La Patelli , Mélanie Laurent, Charlotte le Bon, Virginie Ledoyen, Claude Lelouch, Jalil Lespert, Kad Merad and Elsa Zylberstein, to name just a few.
The march comes six weeks after Hamas’ deadly terror attacks in southern Israel on October 7, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 240 people were taken hostage and taken to the Gaza Strip.
Since then, an Israeli military campaign against Gaza aimed at eradicating Hamas and freeing its hostages has killed more than 11,500 people and displaced 70% of its 2.3 million residents, according to the Hamas-run health authority.
“Two peoples are held captive by a politics that we do not control, that is beyond our understanding and of which we are powerless witnesses,” reads the open letter.
Last weekend there were two protests sparked by the conflict in Paris. The first called for a cease-fire in Gaza on Saturday, and the second was directed against anti-Semitism in response to a wave of anti-Semitic attacks across France since October. 7.
“A huge wave of hatred is gradually ebbing and anti-Semitic and Islamophobic acts and all kinds of violence are occurring in our lives every day. The words ‘choice’ and ‘clan’ are forced upon us: ‘Choose your clan!’,” reads the open letter.
“But when death strikes, we don’t cry or cheer, depending on where we were born. We are silent, we pray, we cry with our loved ones, we hurt, we are human. For this mandate to pick a camp to hate, it is urgent to raise another voice: a voice of unity,” the report continues.
The march starts on Sunday at 14:00 CET at the Institut du Monde Arabe on the left bank of Paris.
Read the open letter and the list of signatories here
Source: Deadline
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
