Hassan Ali Hassan, the Head of Egyptian state television’s Nile Hebrew service, yesterday greeted an Israeli audience on the New Year, stating, “We hope that every Israeli citizen will have his hopes fulfilled in the new year, and that it would be a good and blessed year."
The satellite television station is geared "to espouse the Arab cause and to call for peace based on justice and the legitimate rights of the Palestinian people," says Information Minister Safwat el-Sherif.
The Nile Hebrew service, which lasted approximately thirty minutes on its first broadcast, is to be gradually extended to two hours daily, and will cover news and culture bulletins, political commentary and reviews of the Egyptian press. Six Egyptians who speak Hebrew will host the programs.
For Youssef Sherif Rizqallah, head of Nile TV, the decision to broadcast in Hebrew was a "breakthrough, a step towards countering Israeli allegations and supporting the Palestinian Intifada." Rizqallah told Al Ahram Weekly that in the early days of programming, Nile TV may rely mainly on the expertise of staff from Radio Cairo's Hebrew service.
Rizqallah explained that programmes will feature news, political analyses and talk shows. "There will also be cultural programmes providing information about Egyptian civilisation and Islam in order to place things in their proper perspective. It's a challenge that we accept," he said.
Media expert Saad Labib sees this step as crucial. Israel boasts several satellite channels and "we, too, must convey our message, particularly to those inside the occupied Palestinian territories," he told Al- Ahram Weekly.
Until now, he added, most Arabic television broadcasts have been in Arabic. "We are talking to ourselves. The Arab point of view is not reaching the West," he said.
However, Yosef Binya, the Director of the Arabic service on Israel’s Channel 1 television, conveyed that he doubted that the Egyptian broadcasts would sway Israeli public opinion in a meaningful manner. Several Egyptian commentators have expressed similar views.
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
