Abdel-Fattah launches second legal action against Premier
The author at the centre of the 2026 Writers’ Week controversy has issued a second concerns notice for defamation on the Premier, saying she was left with “no choice”.
Lawyers for Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah have served South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas with a second concerns notice for defamation over statements he made on radio last week.
In a social media post, the author – who was removed from the Writers’ Week lineup by the Adelaide Festival board on January 8 – said, “Rather than reflect on the harm he has caused me, he has doubled down leaving me no choice but to see this through until justice is served”.
The Australia-Palestinian author’s lawyers told InDaily the latest defamation lawsuit related to comments made by the Premier about the writer on 5AA on January 14.
Premier Peter Malinauskas has been contacted for comment.
Abdel-Fattah launched separate defamation proceedings against the Premier last Wednesday after he made “many public statements” about her character.
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“We have never met and he has never attempted to contact me,” Abdel-Fattah said at the time.
“He knows nothing about me, beyond what he has been told by the Murdoch press and the pro-Israel lobby, which he has apparently accepted without question.”
Abdel-Fattah’s lawyers have also written to former Adelaide Festival board chair Tracey Whiting, requesting further documentation about the board’s decision and flagging an intention to begin proceedings.
The news comes as a letter sent by the Premier to Whiting regarding Abdel-Fattah’s inclusion on the Writers’ Week program was leaked over the weekend.
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Dated January 2, the Premier said in the letter that he was “of the view that the inclusion of Randa Abdel-Fattah in the Adelaide Writers’ Week’s 2026 program is not in the public interest”.
“Further, in light of the Bondi terror attack, her appearance runs contrary to the current community expectations of unity, healing and inclusion,” the letter reads.
“I am surprised at the decision by Adelaide Writers’ Week to give a platform to this author and deeply concerned that the board is not prepared to remove her appearance from the program, particularly in light of current circumstances, the national mood and need for social cohesion following the Bondi terror attack.
“While the decision on whether to program Dr Abdel-Fattah remains one for the board, I want to put it on the record that the South Australian Government fundamentally opposes the inclusion of Dr Randa Abdel-Fattah on the 2026 Adelaide Writers’ Week program and reserves the right to make public statements to this effect.”
The Adelaide Festival board’s decision to remove Abdel-Fattah led to the resignation of Adelaide Writers’ Week director Louise Adler, the resignation of the Adelaide Writers’ Week board, the eventual cancellation of the festival and the appointment of a new board.
Adelaide Festival’s new board has since apologised to Abdel-Fattah and invited her to appear at the 2027 edition of the event. The festival’s key opening act Brit-pop band Pulp was considering boycotting the event over the controversy.
