Irish novelist Sally Rooney and her publisher Faber have pulled her best-selling books from the United Kingdom market, bringing a stark financial and legal reality to the author’s public backing of the pro-Palestinian protest group Palestine Action.
When Royalties Collide With Counterterrorism Law
The decision affects millions of readers across Britain who will no longer be able to purchase physical or digital copies of novels like Normal People and Conversations with Friends. Under current legislation, Faber stated that it can no longer pass on earnings or pay royalties from the United Kingdom to Rooney. The publisher noted in its public statement that selling an author’s work without being able to pass on their earnings creates an unconscionable situation. Consequently, the publishing house elected to halt all supply of her work in the region in any format.
The impasse stems from Rooney’s explicit promise to donate funds generated from her book sales to Palestine Action. The British government officially proscribed the direct-action protest group as a terrorist organization in 2025. Giving financial support to a designated terrorist entity under the Terrorism Act constitutes a criminal offense in the UK. By openly declaring her intent to fund the group, Rooney and her publisher faced the immediate prospect of violating British criminal law.
Weighing Free Speech Against Direct Action
The ban on Palestine Action represents the first time British authorities deployed counterterrorism powers against a group targeting property rather than individuals. The group claimed responsibility for several acts of vandalism against facilities linked to Israeli weapons manufacturers, alongside a high-profile June 2025 break-in at R.A.F. Brize Norton where members spray-painted two aircraft. While supporters and civil liberties organizations argue the proscription severely infringes upon free speech and the right to protest, the government maintains the measure followed a rigorous, parliamentary-endorsed process.
More than 3,700 people have been arrested in Britain for expressing solidarity with the group. These arrests frequently involve peaceful demonstrations, such as wearing specific T-shirts or holding signs declaring opposition to genocide and support for Palestine Action. None of those charged have gone to trial yet, as legal teams await a crucial ruling from the UK Supreme Court expected next month.
Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori sharply criticized the publisher’s withdrawal of Rooney’s catalog, saying that a world-renowned author being forced to remove her books exposes the chilling consequences of authoritarian legislation. Meanwhile, Rooney maintained a resolute stance regarding her financial support, noting through her agent that her donations remain entirely legal within the Republic of Ireland. While ebook editions have vanished from British digital storefronts, booksellers with existing physical inventory may keep their current stock on shelves until supplies run out, as Faber confirmed no retroactive restrictions apply to physical copies already in circulation.
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