Jewish groups seek to ban book on Middle East conflict
Palestine-Israel, Politics, 12/23/2002

Jewish organizations have called for ban on a novel by a teenage girl about the Middle East conflict which they claim glorifies Palestinian suicide bombers and fuels racial hatred.

French publisher Flammarion said it had been deluged by protests since publishing a translation of "Sognando Palestina" ("Dream of Palestine") by 16-year old Randa Ghazi as part of a series of books aimed at adolescents.

The book was originally published in Italian in March. Ghazi, born in Italy of Egyptian parents, depicts teenagers caught up in the Palestinian uprising for independence.

One of the characters blows himself up, killing five Israeli soldiers.

Jewish organizations called on the government to ban the book under publishing laws destined to protect young readers, but said they did not plan to fight the novel in court.

They urged Flammarion and its Italian parent company, Rizzoli Corriere delta Sera, to withdraw the book.

They called on French websites and the French and German arms of Internet retailer Amazon.com to stop selling the novel.

"It is beyond comprehension that a book targeting young French readers at Christmas time would have as its central character a teenager who becomes a suicide bomber," said Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Wiesenthal Center.

An official at Flammarion which is also Houellebecq's publisher, said Ghazi's book portrayed both extremists and moderates and therefore did not constitute an incitement to hatred and violence.

"The publisher would like to point out, in a spirit of appeasement, that this is a work of fiction which should not be interpreted in ideological terms," said the official.

No sales figures were available for the book, which was ranked number 193 at midday on Tuesday on the website Amazon.fr.

"It is clearly not among our top sellers," said Elisa O'Neill, spokeswoman for the French division of Amazon.com.

She said the company had no plans to withdraw the book since it was not banned. "This decision does not in any way stem from a prejudice against one religion or another," added O'Neill.

French retailer FNAG said several customers had protested to store managers but it too planned to continue selling the novel.

"Our job is not to be censors. Having: said that, we are not giving it particular prominence either," said a spokesman.

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