Erbil’s 14th intl. book fair begins with senior Kurdish, Iraqi leaders present

ERBIL (Kurdistan 24) – The 14th Erbil International Book Fair, scheduled to go on for ten days with Kurdistan 24 as its media sponsor, opened its doors on Wednesday morning with a number of senior Kurdish and Iraqi leaders attending the commencement ceremony.

Masoud Barzani, the head of the Kurdistan Democratic Party (KDP), initiated the ribbon-cutting ceremony, accompanied by, among others, former Kirkuk Governor Najmaldin Karim and senior Iraqi politician, Ayad Allawi.

They toured the different parts of the sizable event, examining a number of sections before heading off to the building’s auditorium, where various figures, including Barzani, delivered speeches on the latest developments across the country.

With an almost 20 percent increase from last year, some 300 publishing companies from over 21 countries are participating in the event, the event’s director, Hardi Omar, claimed on Monday.

At the fair, publishing houses shelve books in multiple languages and on various topics, with the ones on religious, namely Islamic, affairs usually being the biggest sellers.

In efforts to combat the spread of extremist ideology, the regional government has banned books it sees as promoters of such doctrine. As explained by Omar, a board of experts monitors the fair to ensure such a thing does not happen.

In his speech, Barzani praised the fair and its organizer for providing such an important service, stating that books will “remain one’s good friend,” despite the evolution of technology.

Editing by Nadia Riva