London Bookstore Sparks Outrage Selling Arabic Edition of Hitler’s Mein Kampf

A new bookstore in London has ignited public controversy after selling Arabic editions of Adolf Hitler’s antisemitic book Mein Kampf. The copies were found at the recently opened Apaq bookstore in Edgware, which began operations on August 1. The discovery was made by Elliott Kerr, a Conservative city council member, who documented the books on display. Jewish community representatives and anti-racism organizations condemned the sale and demanded the books be removed.

The bookstore responded that only three copies were in stock, placed at the back alongside history books, and claimed surveillance footage showed Kerr rearranging the books for his photos. Apaq stated that displaying a controversial historical book does not imply endorsement of its ideology and firmly rejected Nazism, antisemitism, racism, and Islamophobia.

Kerr refuted these claims, telling the Jewish News that he deliberately separated the copies to show their quantity and criticized the store for prominently featuring Mein Kampf on one of its main display tables at opening. British Jewish groups also criticized the sale. The Community Security Trust (CST) said no Arabic bookstore in London should promote this notorious Holocaust-era antisemitic text. The Jewish Leadership Council called the incident shocking, and the Campaign Against Antisemitism emphasized the difference between academic editions and uncontextualized distribution that risks spreading hateful messages.

Mein Kampf, written by Hitler in 1923 during his imprisonment after a failed coup attempt in Munich, outlines his admiration for power, aggressive foreign policy, and racial ideology promoting Aryan supremacy. The book vilifies Jews as subhuman and accuses them of parasitism and cultural destruction. The controversy highlights ongoing sensitivities around the book’s availability and the responsibilities of booksellers in handling such material.