to stop Jews from returning to their homes which stolen from them through ethnic cleansing in 1948. I guess the Leftist idea of democracy is that human rights is only for those whom they agree with. It's a sad commentary on the Left, both the naive and the self-righteous, when by definition they deem human rights as universal, but in practice demand it be selective.

hey Ian what you should be protesting is all these arabs moving into your neigborhood and destroying your way of life. I'll bet that after they take over your parliment the first thing they will do is move into your house and throw you on to the street so heep the sign....... some of it will require editing

I remember a time when African Americans wouldn't be allowed to live in certain white neighborhoods. Based on his actions in Jerusalem, If the KKK were demonstrating to keep them out, I assume Ian McEwan would be demonstrating in support of the KKK's right to do so.

I do not believe in book burning, however, I just took one of Ian McEwan's books that I found and burnt it and that felt good. How dare someone protest keeping Jews out of what was and what is a Jewish neighborhood. Why are Arabs allowed to move into Jewish neighborhoods but he wants to keep Jews from moving into neighborhoods in our capital? I think so...I will look for more of his books to start a fire in our fireplace.

Gosh you would think from reading this article that the Jewish people are now, just coming in, and stealing the land. Of course nothing could be further from the truth. As we see HERE: "At the Ottoman census of 1905, the Sheikh Jarrah nahiye (sub-district) consisted of the Muslim quarters of Sheikh Jarrah, Hayy el-Huseyni, Wadi el-Joz and Bab ez-Zahira, and the Jewish quarters of Shim'on Hatsadik and Nahalat Shim'on.[9] Its population was counted as 167 Muslim families, 97 Jewish families, and 6 Christian families" So of the 270 homes that existed there in 1905, over 40 years BEFORE the rebirth of Israel. 37% of the homes were in fact Jewish owned, over 1 home out of every 3 homes. The point is Jewish people living there is hardly unusual, right? Unless you think over one third of the population BEING Jewish is unusual!!! So you must ask yourself what's the big deal. The real question should be this: Why is it ILLEGAL under Palestinian (Arab) Law to sell land to the Jewish people. What can be more racist? BTW, the penalty for breaking the law, is DEATH. Maybe the protesters need to get their priorities in order? The fact is the Jewish people began buying up the land there, and many other area's big time, in the 1970's. Paying 2 to 3 times the current real estate values at the time. Many Arabs jumped at the chance to cash out and move, with major cash in their pockets. The PA, alarmed at this development quickly passed a racist law (prohibiting Arab private landowners from selling their land to Jewish people). Imagine if here in the USA, somebody tried to pass a law (for white people) against selling private residential or commercial property to Blacks or Latinos. What do you think would be the reaction? That's really what's going on, so why aren't the protesters focused on that? After all nobody is stealing any land, the Israeli courts simply wouldn't allow it. So why can't Jewish people live there if they want to, and buy the land to do so? CASE CLOSED

In a recent letter to the Guardian, responding to a group called British Writers in Support of Palestine, McEwan said he will accept the Jerusalem Prize, worth $10,000 ‘as it is a literary, and not a political award and has said that he opposes both illegal Israeli settlements and Hamas terrorism’. Fine, he is entitled to his opinions, but to use this visit (paid for by the organizers of the Book Fair), to attend a political protest and say that it is ‘a great honor’ to do is akin to spitting in our face.

'renowned author' = British Upper Class Toffy-Nosed Antisemite

I am wonderig when will McEven go to Gaza to protest the demolition of houses by Hamas?? When will he protest the abuses of the Hamas bullies?? When will he go Lybia to protest the murder of tens of demonstrators asking for democratic and human rights?? If he does, it will be an one-way trip!!

It is the right of Mr. McEwan the protest, protest all he wants. It is the right of the people of Israel to build, build everything we want. Build night and day, winter and summer, rain and drought, complain to the left or right. Build, build, build, never stop!

Even the leaders of the right know the history. What perpetuates problems are the people who parrot misinformation and lies. The facts in this case are that the neighorhood was always Arab. But during 1947-48 the Arab s were certain they could leave their homes while the war was conducted and return to them as subjects under ARAB rule. When Israel won she refused to allow their return, and the homes were either sold to new occupants or abandoned and re-occupied by squatters. In fact, Israel repeated requested the UN issue ownership paperwork so that the squatted apts could be taxed, but the UN refused. Many of those squatter felt that until they received ownership they would not pay taxes and THOSE are the ones being taken. You can thank the UN for opening up this situation. Not that Israel has no blame. The other fact is that there are hundreds of aprtments available in west Jerusalem but the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood is right next to Mea Sherium, the ultra-orthodox ghetto and the cost of living is much smaller. It is easier to take over an old neighiborhood than afford new housing when the government subsidizes your income. THAT is the real history!

You are not a amember of a cruel racist empire anymore so you cannot talk racism judenrein ethnic cleansing to Jews or anybody else. How dare you!

FOR BEING AN IGNORANT IDIOT. McEWAN -- GET THE HECK OUT OF ISRAEL. GO TO EGYPT, TUNISIA, ALGERIA, YEMEN AND TRY YOUR STUNTS IN THOSE COUNTRIES.

EGYPT OR YEMEN OR BAHRAIN, OR BETTER YET TO LYBIA. THEY MIGHT NOT LIVE TO FIGHT ANOTHER DAY. THE PROTESTORS WOULD BE BEGGING AND BLESSING ISRAEL NOT TO DO THIS BECAUSE THEY ARE COWARDS AND ONLY ATTACK ISRAEL.

WHO GIVE THIS BRITISH GUY TO MAKE PROTEST INSIDE ISRAEL, HE SHOULD BE HANDCAPPED AND DEPORTED BACK FOR 'PERSONA NON GRATA', IMMEDIATELY!

YOU ARE ABSOLUTELY CORRECT ABOUT THIS GUY McEwan!

in the uk, his liberal bona fides were in jeopardy. this clown had to either denounce the Jews or show up at some demonstration, something, he had to do something. otherwise, it meant being shunned by his peers. and, this fool (and few others) could tolerate that. (btw: he doesn't know anything about sheikh jarrah other than what he's been told. but he didn't need to know. he didn't want to know. he just wanted a place to show that he was one of the boys and that he hated those horrible Zionists.)

That they are routinely sexually harassed and sometimes even raped by those very Palestinians for whom they come to protest. This phenomenon is something the leftist media tries hard to keep buried.

stupidity, I shall never know. The world shall never know. Like the origins of antisemitism one can speculate but the full scope is hard to pinpoint.

Dear author Mr. McEwan, Welcome to Jerusalem, Israel! I am very disappointed with your presence at the rally, mainly because I find this chain of demos thoroughly unjustified, unwarranted and, most of all, illogical. It also smacks of double standards. Do you know at all the background - historically - of the change of the dwellers in the neighbourhood? If yes, how could you convince that it's unethical for Jews to live anywhere on account of their being, using the nowadays oh so fashionable bon mot: "race"? How so? But if you do not know the background of the "story", then the minimum expectation is that you should have a prior knowledge before joining an imho questionable casue. The oft cited universal human rights should be clear and wide enough not to exclude certain Jews from somewhere based on their ethnicity. I don't understand the - supposed - consistency of your stance here. Thank you for your attention. Yours Truely, Gábor Fränkl Budapest, Hungary

Thanks Mark, your post says it all.

You can tell by the rabid nature of the Israeli bloggers that you're hitting a raw nerve. Their must be a stop to Israel's thieving of other peoples land, water and lives.

Use your spell check, learn to spell the English language before you post your drivel here,

It's something of a very low , your , level that yopu wrote .

Tell me where did we steal land , water and lives ? We rece4ived this land from your Lord Balfour , the San remo conference and the UN . Stolen ? We got more because of arab refusal and always attacking us . But that's to difficult for you to understand i suppose .