Saturday 18 October 2008

Anti-semitic tracts at Frankfurt Book Fair

Frankfurt Book Fair: more of the same since Matthias Küntzel wrote this alarming piece back in 2005 for the WSJ :

"Every book fair exhibits bestsellers. But anti-Semitic bestsellers? And in Germany, of all places?

Last week at the Frankfurt Book Fair, I happened to find myself in the International Publishers section and was simply astonished. At the stand of the Iranian publishers, in plain view, was the text that influenced Hitler’s Holocaust fantasies like no other: The Protocols of the Learned Elders of Zion, published in English by the Islamic Propagation Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran. The first page of the tract makes clear that Israel is the target of this new edition. It shows a snake made of triangles, enclosing an area labeled "Greater Israel" that includes large areas of Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Iraq, parts of Turkey and northern Saudi Arabia. Each triangle, according to the annotation, symbolizes the "Freemason’s Eye," supposedly a "symbol of Jewry."

A few steps farther on, the second most important classic of modern anti-Semitism was on display: Henry Ford’s The International Jew, in a 200-page abbreviated version, published by the Iranian Department of Translation and Publication, Islamic Culture and Relations Organization. It was interesting to read the numerous footnotes that the Iranian publisher had added. For example, Salman Rushdie’s Satanic Verses is presented as the latest example of the viciousness of Jewish slanders.

A third anti-Semitic screed caught my attention for its gaudy cover: A red Star of David over a gray skull and a yellow map of the world. Its title was Tale of the ‘Chosen People’ and the Legend of ‘Historical Right’, written by Mohammad Taqi Taqipour. In his foreword, the author is certain of another "final solution": Given the "global Islamic movement," Israel will soon be destroyed. (...)"
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Piece by Haviv Rettig at TJP

"Anti-Semitic tracts can be found throughout the Muslim-world book stands at the Frankfurt Book Fair, including at the displays of this year's "honored guest," Turkey, according to the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

In a report submitted to the book fair's director Jürgen Boos, the center's director for international relations, Shimon Samuels, said he was saddened by "the number of anti-Semitic conspiracy theory volumes on the exhibit shelves of Turkish publishers and even on sale at the official Turkish sales stand in the fairground's Forum." (...)

The Wiesenthal Center found a repeat of previous years when "texts expressing hostility to Jews" were seen in the Egyptian, Palestinian and Iranian exhibits. The Palestinian exhibit included books advocating "the inculcation of a culture of death on the Children's Literature displays."

According to Samuels, "the above-mentioned publishers are in violation of their contractual obligations to the Frankfurt Book Fair - among them are chronic annual recidivists.""
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Source: Simon Wiesenthal Center

Frankfurt Book Fair Guest of Honour, Turkey, dishonored by Antisemitic Book Display:
Two books: "Evangelism" as Jewish control of President Bush, and another on Jewish control of Kurdistan. Authored, respectively, by Ismail Vural and Esref Günaydin. Both published in 2007 by Karakutu, Istanbul (on Stand 5.1/C/976/78).

Three volumes: the first on President Bush as a latter-day Hitler, by Mustafa K. Erdomol; the second on Israeli control of Turkey, by Hassan Taplun; the third, entitled "Jewish Utopia", by "Dr Michael Higgerin". All published in 2005-2006 by Ozan, Istanbul (on Stand 5.1/C/976/45).

"Mafiocracy: The Imperialist-Capitalist System of the Mafiosi and Turkey" by Dogu Perinçek. Published in 2005 by Kaynak Analiz, Istanbul (on Stand 5.1/C/976/85).

'The Question of Zion', 2005. The National Centre for Translation, Cairo (on Stand 5.0/A/931).

Three children's books: 'The Tattoos on My Daddy', 'Hassani, Where Are You Going?', 'The Birthday Party of Angel of Death' - all glorify war and encourage martyrdom, published by Shabaviz, Tehran (on Stand 3.0/J/350).

Seven children's primers that extol violence and propagandize the 'Naqba' and 'Intifada' in the name of education: 'Rasha's Window' by Abia Tubasi; 'The Airplane' by Zakariya Mohammed; 'Summer 67' by Majdi Shomali; 'Kosor Ashreia' (a collection of poems); 'Travel over Travel' by Salman Natour; 'Palestinian History Book for Youth' by Sonia and Saed Nimr; 'A Little Piece of Ground' by Elizabeth Laird and Sonia Nimr. All published by the Tamer Institute for Community Education, Ramallah (on Stand 5.0/E/922).

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

These publications certainly
increase one's apreciation of President Bush. However one is puzzled by him being compared to Hitler who was such a good friend of the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem.

Anonymous said...

appreciation