RIYADH: Saudi authorities have closed the stall of an Islamist publisher at the annual book fair and confiscated all his publications, citing threats to the kingdom's security.

The stall of the Arab Network for Research and Publishing disappeared last Friday night from the Riyadh International Book Fair that opened on March 4, a participant said.

“One of the organisers told us that the editor had displayed banned books that may affect security in Saudi Arabia,” he added.

Head of the Arab Network Nawaf al-Qudaimi said on Twitter he had been “surprised to find out on my arrival at the book fair” early on Saturday that another company had taken over his stall during the night.

Qudaimi said his company had not been informed of the decision to shut the stall.

The local Mecca daily quoted the Minister of Culture and Information Abdulaziz Khoja as saying that the publisher “has broken the law by secretly bringing in banned books and trying to distribute them”.

These books “undermine the kingdom's security and its regime. This is an immoral and illegal act,” the daily quoted Khoja as saying.—AFP