Basra: Preparations are underway in Basra Governorate for the inaugural Women’s Literature Festival, organized by the Basra Writers and Authors Union, represented by the Women Writers Forum. The festival, scheduled to begin early next month and last for three days, will feature literary and artistic participation from both within and outside the governorate.

According to National Iraqi News Agency, the head of the Basra Writers and Authors Union, poet Ali Al-Imara, stated that the festival’s preparatory committee recently convened its second meeting to finalize details of the planned events. Al-Imara noted that this first edition will be named in honor of the late poet Hamida Al-Askari, acknowledging her contributions to Basra’s literary and cultural heritage.

Al-Imara elaborated that the opening program, scheduled to take place in Times Square, will include a book fair and a fine arts exhibition. Additionally, a series of cultural and artistic activities are planned, including the screening of a documentary film produced by the Renaissance Cultural Foundation, which highlights the history of the Basra Women Writers Forum.

The meeting addressed various aspects of the program, such as the cultural and artistic events, the number of participants from outside the province, the mechanism for distributing participants across different sessions, and other segments of the festival.

The meeting saw attendance from Mitham Jabbar, advisor to the head of the Culture and Media Committee in the Basra Provincial Council; Ali Al-Aboudi, head of public relations; Ali Al-Amara, head of the Basra Writers and Authors Union; Suhad Abdul-Razzaq, head of the Women Writers Forum; Mirvat Al-Khazai, a member of the administrative board; and the visual artist Riyam Jabbar.