Acclaimed Tel Aviv-based TV screenwriter Hagai Levi says many artists like him want to leave Israel because of the Gaza war, fearing the consequences of a gathering cultural boycott of their country.

Levi, writer of a string of TV hits including "Scenes from a Marriage", "The Affair" and "In Treatment", is an outspoken critic of Israel's siege of Gaza and understands international anger over the issue.

But he worries that calls for a boycott of Israel will end up stifling domestic voices that are critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the politician has singled Levi out for criticism in the past.

"Everyone around me is talking about the possibility of leaving" Israel, the 62-year-old told AFP this month at the Venice Film Festival, where he presented his latest series "Etty".

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