Oman's Zahran Alqasmi Wins Top Arabic Fiction Prize

Omani poet and novelist Zahran Alqasmi was crowned the laureate of the renowned International Prize for Arabic Fiction on Sunday for his book The Water Diviner.

Alqasmi, 49, will receive $50,000, and the prize committee will provide funding to translate the novel into English, organisers of the annual award said on their website.

The Water Diviner tells the story of Omani villager Salem bin Abdullah, hired by his community to find groundwater reserves.

It touches on issues of water scarcity and extreme weather events such as floods.

"The Water Diviner by Zahran Alqasmi explores a new subject in modern fiction: water and its impact on the natural environment and the lives of human beings in hostile regions," Mohammed Achaari, chairman of the judges' panel, said in a statement.

Alqasmi, who has written four novels and ten poetry collections, is the prize's first Omani winner in its 16th year.

He was named this year's winner at a ceremony in Abu Dhabi.

According to the organisers, five other shortlisted authors from Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Libya, and Egypt would each get $10,000.