Iran bans use of the word 'wine' and names of 'foreign animals' in books

The decision to censor books published in Iran is to ensure that Iranians are protected from a Western "cultural onslaught"

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the Supreme Leader, has urged the culture ministry to 'focus on producing appealing books' Photo: AFP

By Ahmed Vahdat - The Telegraph -  19 Jan 2016

Iran’s culture ministry has decided to censor  the use of the word “wine” and the names of “foreign animals” and dignitaries from any books published in the Islamic Republic.

The new rules are designed to protect Iranians from what the regime calls a “cultural onslaught” by the West.

Mohammad Selgi, the head of book publishing at the ministry of culture and Islamic guidance, said: “When new books are registered with us, our staff first have to read them page by page to make sure whether they require any editorial changes in line with promoting the principles of the Islamic revolution, effectively confronting the Western cultural onslaught and censoring any insult against the prophets.”
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