A moral defeat

At the 2026 literature festival in Mantova, sociologist and anthropologist Didier Fassin joined Veronica Fernandes to discuss his book Moral Abdication: How the World Failed to Stop the Destruction of Gaza (original French: Une étrange défaite: Sur le consentement à l’écrasement de Gaza). The book analyses what Fassin describes as the "moral and political debacle" that has followed Hamas’s attack of 7 October 2023 and Israel’s subsequent destruction of Gaza.

“This is a book about facts,” Fassin says, describing his attempt to document the media and political representation of the war during its first six months. He explains that he wanted “to produce an archive of the first six months of the war in Gaza, to leave a trace for the future.”

Language is a central concern of the book. Fassin examines how political and media discourse has been used to justify and legitimise Israel’s military actions, while making criticism increasingly difficult to voice. In particular, he argues that describing the conflict simply as a war between Hamas and Israel erases the much longer history preceding 7 October, a history that began before the creation of Hamas. It also obscures statements by Israeli political leaders at the outset that there are no innocent Palestinians. For Fassin, this linguistic and political framing cannot be separated from the role of Western powers, whose diplomatic, political, economic and military support has contributed to the legitimisation of the violence.

The discussion turns to resistance and collective responsibility. Fassin points to South Africa’s case before the International Court of Justice as an important intervention by a non-Western power, particularly given the country’s own history of apartheid. He stresses that collective action is already taking place and that it must continue. Demonstrations, political pressure and other forms of mobilisation can make a difference, even if change comes gradually.

The work of Francesca Albanese, the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territories occupied since 1967, is another example of how sustained documentation and public advocacy can have an impact. For Fassin, these efforts matter precisely because they challenge the idea that nothing can be done. Responsibility, he argues, is collective and so is the possibility of changing what happens next.