The Palestine 13th International Exhibition kicked off on Thursday, with Kuwait’s participation, in the town of Surda, some four kilometers north of Ramallah. Under the logo “from nakba to the state,” Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Ashtiah and Minister of Culture Atef Abu Saif inaugurated the event, due until September 17, with the attendance of Palestinian officials and diplomats.
Speaking after the inauguration ceremony, Ashtiah said, “The exhibition depicts the nationality and culture,” noting that Al-Nakba narrates the plight of more than 950,000 Palestinians who had been driven out of their homes. The Israeli occupiers had also stolen Palestinians’ books and placed them in their libraries, he added. The fairgrounds host four pavilions representing Kuwait, Jordan, Oman, and Morocco.
More than 390 publishing houses are participating in the cultural event. Saad Al-Enezi, representative of Kuwait’s National Council of Culture, Arts, and Letters and director of the Kuwaiti pavilion, said the Kuwaiti participation is intended to manifest support for Palestinian activity and spread the distinguished Kuwaiti cultural works to the largest number possible among the Palestinians.
In remarks to KUNA, Al-Enezi said, “We are participating with more than 400 themes from our publications, such as Al-Arabi magazine. He observed that many Kuwaiti issues had already been sold at encouragingly low prices. “Kuwait has always supported Palestine and its cause at all quarters, including the cultural sector,” he affirmed, noting that Kuwait participated in last year’s edition of the Palestinian book fair.
Meanwhile, Abdulsalam Al-Atari, the general director of literature, publishing, and libraries at the Palestinian Ministry of Culture, said in remarks to KUNA, “Kuwait has been present in the Palestinian culture, like its engagement in political, economic, and social issues.”
