HarperCollins issued a statement Wednesday that it will stop the sale of atlases that omit Israel from maps of the Middle East. These books were being sold and distributed in some Arab countries. Earlier Wednesday, an official from the company’s subsidiary had defended the omission of Israel, based on the demands of its clients in the Arab countries that purchase the books.
Currently, the printed map shows a piece of land without a label sandwiched between Lebanon, Jordan, Gaza and the West Bank.
A statement from HarperCollins issued in an email to the Journal Wednesday afternoon states that the omission was a mistake and that no more such books will be sold. The statement also said unsold books with the omission will be destroyed.
“HarperCollins regrets the omission of the name Israel from their Collins Middle East Atlas,” the statement from the U.S.-based publishing giant says. “This product has now been removed from sale in all territories and all remaining stock will be pulped. HarperCollins sincerely apologises for this omission and for any offence caused.”
Earlier Wednesday, a spokesperson from Collins Bartholomew, a HarperCollins subsidiary, was quoted in The Tablet, a Catholic weekly based in Britain, saying that to include Israel would have been “unacceptable” and would not have agreed with the “local preferences” of the atlases' target audience.
