Egypt has suddenly banned Israel’s participation in the international book fair due to open in Cairo next week. The move took Israeli officials by surprise and was viewed by them as a serious setback to the process of normalizing relations between the two countries. A Foreign Ministry spokesman said this afternoon that the Israeli Embassy in Cairo was seeking an explanation.
Israel was not officially notified of the ban. The Egyptian agent commissioned by the Israel Book Publishers Association to set up the Israeli exhibit was informed by the fair’s organizers that the exhibit would not be welcome. The agent conveyed that information to the Israeli Embassy, according to reports reaching here today. Israeli diplomats in Cairo are trying to persuade the authorities to rescind the ban.
Official circles here said if that cannot be accomplished, the Egyptian move was likely to be viewed in Israel with great seriousness as an embarrassing retreat from the slowly developing normalization process.
The book fair was to be the first international event in Egypt in which Israel would take part. The Israel Export Institute has already spent considerable sums planning the exhibit. Although no official reason for the ban was forthcoming from Cairo, it is believed here that the Egyptians feared repercussions from elements opposed to any speed-up of normalization with Israel. Fear for the safety of the Israelis manning the book display was also expressed.
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