Tariq Ramadan, a prominent European Muslim scholar, is calling on “all people of conscience” to boycott the forthcoming Turin Book Fair in Italy. Ramadan's outrage stems from the fact that the Turin festival organizers have decided to honor Israeli literature because it is the Jewish state's 60th anniversary. Luminaries from the world of Israeli letters like David Grossman, Amos Oz, A.B. Yehoshua, and Etgar Keret are scheduled to attend.

According to a post by Rachel Donadio on The New York Times Book Review's Paper Cuts blog, Ramadan told an Italian news agency that “From now on, we cannot recognize the legitimacy of celebrating the state of Israel, which leaves death and desolation in its wake.” The issue, he said, “is not an Islamic or Arab question, but a matter of world conscience.”