Three translations of book challenging dubious claims on Persian Gulf introduced

July 13, 2021 - 18:26

TEHRAN – Arabic, Turkish and French translations of the Persian book “A Fuss over Nothing” that debunks dubious claims about the Persian Gulf were introduced in an online session held on Monday.

The session was organized by the Islamic Culture and Relations Organization (ICRO) in Tehran.

Iranian scholar Mohammad-Ali Movahhed wrote the book in response to the book “Dispute between the UAE and Iran over the Islands: Abu Musa, Greater and Lesser Tunb; British Documents” authored by Iraqi writer Walid Hamdi al-Aazami in 2013.

The Arabic edition of “A Fuss over Nothing” has been rendered by Sadiq Khursha, a professional translator of Persian books.

It has been translated into French by Mithra Farzad, an Iranian scholar teaching at the University of Paris-Sud. The London-based company Candle and Fog is the publisher of the book. 

The Turkish edition published by the Istanbul-based publisher Demavend has been translated by Professor Nimet Yildirim of Ataturk University in Turkey.

“I’m really happy that translations of my book into three great languages of the world are being unveiled,” Movahhed said.

“I wrote this book years ago shortly after Walid Hamdi’s book was released. I first planned to author only an article, however, when I put the pen on paper it went its own way and the article turned into a book,” he added.     

Speaking at the meeting, ICRO director Abuzar Ebrahimi-Torkaman said that Hamdi al-Aazami did not possess sufficient expertise to write the book, and added that the historical documents cited in his book have been distorted.    

“In a research project, experts can discuss the documents and comment about them, but, they are not allowed to manipulate the information,” he noted. 

Ebrahimi-Torkaman called Movahhed’s decision to write the book “a good example of a patriotic defense of Iranians’ rights,” and said, “Those states that seek to change the name of the Persian Gulf or make claims about Abu Musa, Greater and Lesser Tunb, know the truth better than the others, but they want to close their eyes to the truth, which has been scientifically exposed in Movahhed’s book.”    

Photo: This combination photo shows the front covers of the Arabic, French and Turkish translations of Mohammad-Ali Movahhed’s book “A Fuss over Nothing”.

MMS/YAW