The ‘Word for Word Resistance’ Festival Concludes / Works of 200 Poets Judged

Somayyeh Fakheri told the reporter of Iran’s Book News Agency (IBNA) in Urmia that the provincial poetry festival “Word for Word Resistance,” which began on June 3, 2025 (Khordad 3, 1404 Persian calendar), coinciding with the anniversary of Khorramshahr’s liberation, aimed to elevate resistance poetry, identify the province’s top poets, utilize existing literary capacities, and honor the concepts of sacrifice and steadfastness. It continued until the end of September (Shahrivar) and reached its final stage simultaneously with the beginning of the 33rd Book Week.

She added that during the “Word for Word Resistance” festival, over 200 works from poets across the province were submitted to the secretariat. A series of specialized sessions were also held with the presence of professors such as Hossein Sharafkhanlou and Majid Shaker, which played a significant role in improving the intellectual and artistic level of participants, especially students.

Fakheri stated that the judging of this edition’s works was handled by Saeid Soleimanpour, a university professor, poet, and screenwriter, and Vahid Hayatlou, a poet, professor at Farhangian University, and secretary of the Pouria-ye Vali Literary Circle in Khoy city.

Referring to the names of the winners and judges of the festival, she said: Nazila Kazem Alilou from Urmia won first place, Fekriyeh Salamat from Urmia second place, and Shamseddin Bakhtaki from Takab third place.

The executive secretary of the “Word for Word Resistance” poetry festival in Salmas added: In the Turkish poetry section, Mahmoud Tarverdipur from Salmas won first place, Seyed Teymour Jamei from Urmia second place, and Asghar Rahimi from Salmas third place. Najmeh Banaeian Boroujeni from Takab and Ali Behrouz Moghanjouqi, a young poet from Salmas, received honorable mentions.