Istanbul, İzmir book fairs ‘may not take place’ this year

ISTANBUL

The 39th International Istanbul Book Fair and the 25th Izmir Book Fair have been postponed to a later date due to the increasing COVID-19 cases in recent days.

“Dear visitors and publishers, our [Istanbul Book] fair has been postponed to a later date. We hope to meet you again this year,” according to the statement by TÜYAP, a Turkish-based fair organization company.

Last year, nearly one million people visited the Istanbul Book Fair, which was attended by 800 national and international publishers and where more than 300 cultural events took place.

The fair, which lasted for a week, brought together important figures from the book and publishing world.

The 25th Izmir Book Fair has been postponed once again.

Initially, the date determined for the fair to take place was between April 11 and 18, however, it was later announced that the fair will be held between Nov. 28 and Dec. 6 due to start of the pandemic.

Experts predict that the events may not take place this year if the pandemic course and the increase in cases continue in this direction.