Saturday, December 07, 2002

Simon Weisenthal Center: SUICIDE BOMBER: HEROIC ROLE MODEL FOR YOUNG READERS IN NEW BOOK
"A newly released best-selling novel for teens, Rever la Palestine (Dream of Palestine), sympathetically portrays a young Palestinian who becomes a suicide bomber. The fifteen-year-old Egyptian author, Randa Ghazi, who lives with her family in Italy, writes about Palestinian teenagers who fight 'bloodthirsty Jews, who assassinate children and old people, profane mosques, and rape Arab women.'

Dream of Palestine is being touted as 'surprisingly mature' and 'a great text of suffering and hope.' One of the novel's heroes calls for Jihad against the Jews who are 'a doomed people' and to 'kill all Israelis.' The main character is encouraged 'to kill hundreds in his suicide bombing' and later does blow himself up along with five Israelis.

Released to coincide with the Christmas season, and inexpensively priced, Dream of Palestine has quickly sold out in major bookstores in Paris. It has been released by Flammarion, the third largest publishing house in France, a subsidiary of the Italian media giant, Rizzoli Corriere della Sera, which includes among its holdings one of the largest Italian daily newspapers and Rizzoli bookstores in the United States.

The Wiesenthal Center is urging Amazon France and other French online websites to stop selling the book which is full of libelous accusations and which clearly incites racist violence and validates terrorism. The themes in this book could serve as the basis for litigation.

WE MUST ACT NOW to raise our voices in protest of this horrific book. The Jewish community of France has launched a protest, but more, much more needs to be done..."


I've looked it up on Amazon France but I can't read the review, not knowing French. Could someone please do it for me and put a translation or a summary on my comments?