The 7th day (Tuesday, May 8, 2012) of the 25th Tehran International Book Fair finished with a celebration of the cultural jihad in the Islamic Republic of Iran in the past quarter of a century and the birthday anniversary of Hazrat Zahra (daughter of Prophet Mohammad).

IBNA: The ceremony was held in the presence of the Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Mohammad Husseini, Minister of Justice Morteza Bakhtiari, and Bahman Dorri, Cultural Deputy of Guidance Ministry and director of the book fair at Tehran's Grand Imam Khomeini Prayer Ground.

In his address which followed the recitation of a number of Quranic verses and Iran’s national anthem, Husseini marked Iran’s superior status in the Middle East regarding books and other publications. “We have gained the 10th status in the world ranking which is one of the achievements of the cultural jihad in the past quarter of a century in the Islamic Republic of Iran.”

He asserted that activities about books are not merely bound to the Tehran international book fair. “We arrange book expos in all the provinces in Iran all around the year; the latest numbers indicate that last year over 2 million book volumes have been sold during the provincial fairs.”

According to the Culture Minister, as many as 19 editions of the Book Week have been held so far and numerous book festivals and awards including the Book of the Season, Jalal Award, Parvin Award, the Game Aval (first step) Award, and some other book awards are arranged by the ministry annually in Iran. All of these events are arranged by the cultural department of the culture ministry.

Husseini further mentioned some of the ministry’s activities in the past few years like praising Iran’s cultural and literary luminaries which was intended to spark motivation among the emerging literati to create more valuable works.

The minister noted the Women’s Day and the birthday anniversary of Fatima Zahra (daughter of Prophet Mohammad) which will be on next Saturday. “She has always been and remains to be a paragon of virtue for all Muslim or even non-Muslim women in the world throughout history and her life is still being made a sample of now that centuries have past her martyrdom.”

“To address a modicum of her sublime status for Muslims, a separate stall has been arranged in the 25th Tehran International Book Fair displaying over 700 book titles about Hazrat Fatima(S.A),” added Husseini.

Later in the ceremony, a Lebanese group sang two pieces for the audience.

The 25th Tehran International Book Fair is being held at Tehran's Grand Imam Khomeini Prayer Ground and will run through May 12, 2012.

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