The Lakes International Comic Art Festival (LICAF) is delighted to announce its “From Palestine” project, which includes a programming strand at its annual comics gathering in Bowness-on-Windermere later this month (26th – 28th September 2025).

The Festival will see the launch of three new comics by artists from Gaza, to be published by LICAF, following up on the previous publication of the highly acclaimed collection of cartoons, Safaa and the Tent, by Safaa Odah, translated by Nada Hodali. 

All four titles will be on sale at the Festival and all profits from the sale of these works will go to the creators.

Palestinian cartoonist and caricaturist Mohammad Sabaaneh, an active member in the Cartoon Movement, will be launching his book, 30 Seconds from Gaza, in English, at a special event over the weekend that will also see the launch of the Qusasat comics anthology, Strategies of Surviving by Abod Nasser and Waiting Rituals by Khaled Jarada.

At a summer camp near Bethlehem in August 2025, 13 young Palestinian artists created a new digital anthology called Qusasat (“Snippets”), co-led by Mollie Ray from the UK and Basel Naser, from Palestine. This was the culmination of a new collaboration between LICAF and the Power Group in Bethlehem, supported by The Amos Trust.

The anthology includes the work of Hana Ibrahim Mhani, Dalia Nidal Dar Abed Alhai, Tuleen Hanna Asmari, Shahd Izz Aldeen Alruzze, Nermin Anees Naifeh, Natalie Alz, Karma Ihab Barghothi, Ward Nayef Al-Hantouli, Majd Rafat Wahbeh, Abdalrahim Mutaz Zalloum, Mohammad Majed Al-Raie and Dima Iyas Nassar.

Sliman Mukarker, co-founder of Power, will be on stage to help launch this brilliant new anthology, with a free copy of the anthology for every audience member. 

Strategies of Surviving is a powerful work by talented animator and illustrator Abod Nasser, which will only be available in very limited numbers. He says of his work that his sketches are not meant to avoke pity “nor to scenes of war and suffering”, but are about the Gazan in understanding life… “When he was forced to reinvent it from scratch.”

“This special edition is a wonderful opportunity to show Gazans as dreamers, not just as breaking news,” says Abod Nasser. “I am truly grateful for this opportunity.”

LICAF is also proud to have been working with one of the Palestinian comics scene’s leading lights, Khaled Jarada, who is also from Gaza, now based in Paris, who will join the event online to discuss his new comic, Waiting Rituals, a carefully constructed “concertina comic”, mentored by UK artist Lucy Sullivan. 

Last, but by no means  least, award-winning cartoonist Mohammad Sabaaneh will talk about his most recent book, 30 Seconds from Gaza, recently published in English by Olive Branch Press, which will formally launched at LICAF at this event hosted by Paul Gravett.

Capturing and drawing scenes from videos posted on social media was a decision Sabaaneh made as a way to archive moments and information that are expected to be banned and erased later. Sabaaneh’s political cartoons portray a world in which injustice is unending, but so is the resilience of the Palestinian people. 30 Seconds from Gaza is an artistic triumph and a powerful testament to Palestinian sumud (steadfastness). It is proof of art’s capacity to make visible what oppressors want the world to forget.

Safaa and the Tent – limited copies of the first edition available at the Festival and through the LICAF Etsy store – Qusasat and Waiting Rituals are published by the Lakes International Comic Art Festival amd will be available to buy via From the Festival.

All profits from the sale of the books published will go to the comic creators involved.

“We’re honoured to present these powerful works by such a range of Palestinian talents at a very troubled time,” says Festival Director Julie Tait. “LICAF has highlighted the challenging and important work of a wide range of diverse creators since its launch in 2013, and this year is no different.”

• Tickets for the Lakes International Comic Art Festival 2025 are on sale here

From Palestine 4.00 – 5.00pm, The Old Laundry Theatre, Saturday 27th September | Entrance to Festival Ticket Holders Only

Meaning snippets, “Qusasat” is a collaborative project between LICAF and the Power Collective in Bethlehem. Its first phase was a summer camp in July 2025 to create a new digital anthology by twelve young Palestinian artists, co-led by Mollie Ray. Sliman Mukarker, co-founder of Power, will join us to launch this brilliant new anthology.  

Meanwhile LICAF is proud to have been working with one of the Palestinian comics scene’s leading lights, Khaled Jarada, who is from Gaza, now based in Paris, and is producing his first full-length comic with LICAF, mentored by Lucy Sullivan which il be shared at LICAF for the first time. 

Last but not least is Mohammad Sabaaneh, an award-winning cartoonist whose most recent book 30 Seconds from Gaza is now published in English and formally launched at LICAF at this event hosted by Paul Gravett.

Every member of the audience will receive a copy of Qusasat and Khaled Jarada’s new work