Counter-terror titles abound at Cairo book fair

Books on Islamic education that refute the false fatwas issued by extremist groups and offer a rebuttal to extremist ideology were in high demand at the 48th Cairo International Book Fair, organisers told Al-Mashareq.

The two-week fair, which opened January 26th under the theme 'Youth and the Culture of the Future', brought in 670 publishing houses from 35 countries.

"Notable this year was Al-Azhar’s participation in the book fair for the first time in the history of the fair," said Al-Azhar Library director Abdul-Mageed Ahmed, who was in charge of the institution's book fair pavilion.

The institution feels the great responsibility placed on it in the ideological war against terrorism, he told Al-Mashareq, and therefore decided to participate with a pavilion featuring its publications.

These included material published by its fatwa observatory, library, university, media centre, centre for translation and Islamic research academy, as well as the World Association for Al-Azhar Graduates.

Related books at the fair included "ISIL’s Strategy for Attracting and Recruiting the Youth”, “International Relations in Islam”, “Guide to the Faculty of Fundamentals of Religion”, and “The Islamic Research Academy ...its Decisions and Recommendations.”

An Al-Azhar fatwa committee responded to questions from the public, he said, and sought to correct misconceptions about Islam.

Meanwhile, several seminars sought "to acquaint the public with moderate Islam and expose the truth about the toxic ideas extremist groups are trying to spread among the youth", he said.

At the pavilion, visitors were able to view an exhibition of panoramic photographs of Al-Azhar and its schools and universities, and there was a variety of activities for children, sponsored by Nour magazine.

Interest in counter-terror titles

The fair’s organising committee also held a number of seminars that examined the root causes of extremist ideology and explored ways to combat it.

"The interest in books that call for combating terrorism and extremism is only natural under the circumstances that Egypt and the region as a whole are experiencing," Abdel Moneim Mohammed, the foreign book fairs co-ordinator at a government-run publishing house, told Al-Mashareq.

Many readers are eager to obtain information on ways to stem the spread of terrorist ideology, he said, and many new titles explain the rationale and recruitment methods employed by extremist groups to entice new recruits.

The high cost of publishing this year has had some effect on the number of new book releases, as many privately owned publishing houses and writers postponed the publishing of new books, Mohammed said.

Meanwhile government-run publishing houses, owing to their lower publishing costs, were able to publish many new titles this year, which restored balance to the fair as a whole, he added.

"For the first time this year, most government-run publishing houses displayed books by other publishers, which enriched the display shelves and increased the variety," he said.

Encouraging young people to read

Mahmoud Saeed, second year engineering student at Cairo University, told Al-Mashareq he has visited the fair more than once, accompanied by his parents or by colleagues and friends.

"Everyone is interested in the new book releases and catching the seminars and debates they generate," he said.

The mere holding of the fair and display of such a large number of books and publications is "a blow to terrorism, which seeks to destroy young minds, ban free thinking and confiscate freedoms", he said

Many publishers gave students special discounts to encourage them to read, he said, adding that he also noticed dozens of students attending the fair's seminars or serving as volunteers to guide visitors.