Writer in Prison: Yousri Alghoul

To mark Writers in Prison Day, the Swiss German PEN Centre draws attention each year to authors who are imprisoned because of their work.

For the Palestinian writer and essayist Yousri Alghoul, literature is inextricably linked to the experiences of war, loss and displacement. Having grown up in the Al-Shati refugee camp in the Gaza Strip, he has been writing for almost two decades about everyday life under occupation – about hope and a lack of prospects, resilience and humanity. In conversation with Demian Cornu (interpreted by Zainab Lüscher), Alghoul talks about writing during war, about the people in prison and those who wait for them. A booklet containing texts by the author, translated into German especially for this series of events, will be available at the venue. To mark Writers in Prison Day, the Swiss German PEN Centre is shining a spotlight on authors whose freedom is under threat.