Palestinian writer Basim Khandaqji, who has been in Israeli prisons since 2004, won the 2024 International Prize for Arabic Fiction (Booker) for his 2023 novel A Mask, the Colour of the Sky.
“We are delighted to announce that the #ArabicFiction2024 winning novel is A Mask, the Colour of the Sky by Basim Khandaqji,” International Prize for Arabic Fiction wrote on X.
The prize was accepted on Basim’s behalf by his brother Yousef, accompanied by publisher Rana Idriss of the Lebanon-based Dar al-Adab publishing house, at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi on Sunday, April 28.
The International Prize for Arab Fiction includes 50,000 dollars (Rs 41,72,275).
The judges selected the winning Arabic novel from 133 submitted titles as the best novel published between July 2022 and June 2023.
The book is about Nur, an archaeologist who lives in a Palestinian refugee camp near Ramallah and dons a “mask” after discovering an Israeli identity card in the pocket of an old coat.
Nabil Suleiman, Chair of the 2024 Judges, praised the novel for blending personal and political narratives, exploring self-awareness, others’ awareness, and global awareness, Wafa News Agency reported.
He added that it dissects a complex, bitter reality of family fragmentation, displacement, genocide and racism.
Who is Basim?
Basim, a Palestinian novelist born in the city of Nablus in 1983, studied journalism and media at An-Najah National University. He wrote short stories until his arrest in 2004.
He has been convicted of terrorism and sentenced to three life sentences for planning a bombing that killed three people in Tel Aviv.
After his detention, he underwent a thorough investigation and was later sentenced to three lifetimes in prison.
During his time in prison, he published two collections of poems, 250 articles, and several literary novels.
