Palestinian writers urge Paris book fair boycott

The Palestinian Writers' Union on Monday urged Arabic publishers to boycott next month's book fair in Paris because Israel will be the guest of honour.

"We asked Palestinian and Arabic publishing houses to boycott this fair," the union's president Al-Mutawakel Taha told AFP.

 "It is not worthy of France, the land of the revolution and human rights, to welcome at its book fair a racist, occupying country," Taha said.

He said that inviting Israel at the March 14-19 fair would "legitimize all its fascist acts".

Some 40 Israeli writers have been invited by the fair's organizers, to mark the 60th anniversary of the Zionist state.

Palestinians call the May 15 anniversary the "Nakba," or Arabic for "the catastrophe".