Hanif withdraws after Palestinian poet 'dis-invited' by Goethe Institut.

KARACHI -- Eminent journalist and novelist Mohammed Hanif on Tuesday pulled out of a conference to be held by the Goethe Institut in Hamburg after the organisers revoked the invitation to Palestinian writer and poet Mohammed El-Kurd.

Informing his followers about the move, Mr Hanif tweeted: 'Withdrawing from @goetheinstut's Hamburg conference where they first invited and then disinvited Palestinian journalist and poet Mohammed El-Kurd. Reason is even more offensive. Apparently Kurd is not respectful enough towards Israel.'

The conference to be held from June 23 to 26 focuses on the topic, 'Beyond the Lone Offender - Dynamics of the Global Right' to which both Mr Hanif, the author of A Case of Exploding Mangoes who these days resides in London, and Mr Kurd were invited.

The Goethe Institut on June 17 relayed their decision about the 24-year-old poet arguing, 'After some consideration, the Goethe-Institut decided that Mohammed El-Kurd was not an appropriate speaker for this forum: in previous posts on...

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