IPA concerned about Egyptian publisher missing since Riyadh International Book Fair 

The IPA is appealing to Saudi authorities to reveal why Egyptian publisher Ahmed Mahmoud Ibrahim, a co-founder and head of international book fairs at Kotopia, is being detained.

Ibrahim, known as Ahmed Diouf, was in Riyadh from late September to early October 2022 to participate in the Riyadh International Book Fair. He was arrested by the Saudi Police at the Kotopia booth on 8th October.

Despite enquiries from both Kotopia and IPA, there has been no news on his status or whereabouts since. Outside of Kotopia, Ahmed Diouf was also part of a bookstore called Sadeem and represented Canadian publisher Hayat.

The IPA said: "[We] appeal to the Saudi authorities for information about the reasons for Ahmed Diouf’s detention and any possible charges he faces." It said it had contacted the Saudi embassy in Switzerland but at the time of writing had received no response.