Book reading on Jewish Algerian heritage canceled amid war in Gaza

A reading event for the book “Jewish Algeria” was canceled in Algeria on Saturday, after criticism surfaced suggesting the event was ill-timed given the war in Gaza, according to a report by the AFP.

L'Arbre à dire, a bookstore in Algiers that planned to host the event exploring Algeria's Jewish heritage, announced the cancellation without further details.

The decision followed a statement by Islamist lawmaker Zouhir Fares, who claimed the Ministry of Culture was halting the event in response to a formal appeal. Fares also shared his letter urging authorities to act, describing the book as "cultural normalization with Zionists."

In his letter, Fares noted that the foreword of the book was authored by French writer Valérie Zenatti, whom he identified as "a citizen of the Zionist entity (Israel) who had served in its army recently."

Another scheduled reading on Thursday in Tizi Ouzou, about 60 miles east of Algiers, was also canceled, according to a Facebook post from the bookstore Librairie Cheikh, AFP reports. 

The book's author, Hedia Bensahli, said in an interview with Algerian newspaper Le Soirlast February that Jewish Algeria focuses on Algeria's history and heritage, not on "events in other parts of the world." 

She mentioned that the book, covering over 2,000 years of history, had already been on sale prior to the outbreak of the Gaza conflict last year.

"Like everyone else, I could not have foreseen the October 7 Hamas attacks or the Israeli army's subsequent response," Bensahli said.

L'Arbre à dire told the AFP that “Jewish Algeria” is no longer part of its collection, though authorities have not ordered its removal.