http://www.kuwaittimes.net/read_news.php?newsid=MTI3NjYxMzYzMg==
Hamas TV forced to halt broadcasts to Europe
Published Date: June 16, 2010
GAZA CITY: A France-based satellite provider is halting broadcasts of the Hamas
TV channel
to Europe and parts of the Arab world because of concerns that it
spreads incitement, a station official said yesterday. The decision
will deprive Gaza-based Al-Aqsa TV of most of its viewers, said the
channel's head, Hazem Sharawy. The Hamas station , best known for its
children's programs glorifying violence against Israel , is the centerpiece of
a growing media operation of Gaza's Islamic militant Hamas rulers.
Losing the satellite provider will hamper the group's attempts to spread its
message and raise funds abroad.
The decision to cut off the Hamas station came six years after a
similar move by France and the US against al-Manar, the channel of
Lebanese guerrilla group Hezbollah. In Paris,
Eutelsat spokeswoman Vanessa O'Connor said that last week the French
broadcasting regulator CSA ordered it to stop beaming the Hamas channel
into Europe by June 26. Al-Aqsa TV is part of a package of channels
transmitted by Bahrain-based satellite operator Noorsat, which passes
them in a single signal to Eutelsat, O'Connor said.
Eutelsat has passed on the CSA's order to stop transmitting al-Aqsa TV
to Noorsat. O'Connor said it was up to Noorsat to block the al-Aqsa TV
signal. She would not comment on what would happen if Noorsat doesn't
comply with the CSA order by the June 26 deadline. Sharawy said Noorsat
called late Monday, telling Al-Aqsa TV that its programs incite to
hatred. The al-Aqsa chief alleged that the decision was politically
motivated and meant to silence criticism of Israel. "The enemy (Israel)
can kill us, destr
oy our lands and blockade us. But we aren't allowed to expose them," Sharawy
charged.
The Hamas channel immediately flipped into campaign mode Monday. The
top left hand corner of the channel showed a countdown and read "time
remaining for broadcast." The satellite broadcasts, which reach Europe,
North Africa and parts of the Gulf, are expected to be halted Thursday, Sharawy
said. The channel is not beamed to the US Al-Aqsa's second satellite provider
only reaches viewers in the Middle East, he said. Viewers can also still watch
the station on the Internet.
Sharawy said he did not know how many viewers the station had, but that
viewer phone calls and text messages indicate the bulk are from outside
Gaza.
He said the station's coverage during Israel's three-week war with
Hamas in Gaza that ended in January 2009 dramatically boosted al-Aqsa
TV's popularity. During the war, the station's building was bombed and
employees broadcast from a secret location. In the past, Israel and
others have repeatedly accused al-Aqsa TV of inciting against Israel,
especially in
children's programs.
One of its most criticized programs, Tomorrow's Pioneers, once featured a
high-pitched Mickey Mouse
rip-off called "Farfour" who encouraged children to fight against the
occupiers of Muslim countries, while taking calls from kids who were
praised for singing about fighting Israel. After a wave of criticism,
the station killed off Farfour with mock-Israeli soldiers beating him
to death. But it has not toned down the message of its children's
programs.
The station is popular with conservative Muslims in Gaza for its
Islamic-based programming. Women wear headscarves and sometimes face
veils on morning talk shows. Music videos show girls modestly dressed
in headscarves singing, as well as gunslinging militants fighting
Israel and chanting for revenge. The channel's lengthy interview
programs provide the Hamas viewpoint to the world. Hamas sees media
outreach as a vital part of the movement's success.
It has another television channel that broadcasts from Lebanon,
several affiliated Web sites, a radio station, a glossy magazine for
its military wing and two newspapers printed in Gaza. The militant group
has also produced a movie glorifying one their militants and created
animations boasting about their capture of an Israeli soldier held for
the last four years in Gaza.
Six years ago, Hezbollah's Al-Manar television was also limited. At the
time, France's highest administrative body banned satellite broadcasts
by the Lebanese television station.
Later, the US State Department placed the Hezbollah station on its list
of terror organizations for broadcasting incitement.-AP
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
