MEMRI Daily: March 28, 2012
Post-Revolutionary Egyptian Al-Tahrir TV Channel Resurrects Controversial
2002 Egyptian Antisemitic TV Series 'Horseman Without A Horse'
Egyptian Journalist: Jews Use Victims' Blood to Prepare Purim Sweets
Egyptian Daily: Mossad Behind Violent Incident at Port Said Soccer Match
Special Dispatch No. 4611
Post-Revolutionary Egyptian Al-Tahrir TV Channel Resurrects Controversial
2002 Egyptian Antisemitic TV Series 'Horseman Without A Horse'
The Egyptian Al-Tahrir TV channel has recently begun airing the
controversial 2002 antisemitic TV series Horseman Without A Horse. Al-Tahrir
TV, which was established on the eve of the resignation of president Hosni
Mubarak, claims to represent the youth of the revolution.
The main protagonist of the series, played by series creator Egyptian actor
Muhammad Subhi, is the Zorro-like Hafez Naguib, known as "The Fox," who
fights against British rule in Egypt. In the story, The Fox has managed to
obtain a copy of The Protocols of the Elders of Zion that was smuggled to
Egypt from Russia. The Protocols is alleged by the series to be instrumental
to efforts by the Jews of Egypt to establish a Jewish state in Palestine;
according to the story, these Jews had hoped to keep the document out of the
public eye, as its discovery could tarnish their image and have a negative
impact on their conspiracy.
During Ramadan (November-December) 2002, Horseman Without A Horse aired in
Egypt on Egyptian government TV, and on the privately owned Dream TV
channel. It aired also on Hizbullah's Al-Manar TV and on Iraq's
government-owned TV channel. (For more about the series, see MEMRI Special
Dispatch No. 309, "Ramadan TV Special: The Protocols of the Elders of Zion,"
December 7, 2011, http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/563.htm)
At the time, the series was widely criticized, including by the U.S.
administration, Congress, and the American press; one result of the
criticism was that other channels refrained from broadcasting it. In January
2003, Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak's political advisor Osama Al-Baz
wrote three articles on antisemitism that were published by the
English-language Egyptian Al-Ahram Weekly Online and also released by the
Egyptian Embassy in Washington, D.C. In them, he analyzed the expansion of
antisemitism, stated that Europe was responsible for its development, and
claimed that it was actually foreign to the Arab world and to Islam. He went
on to refute some common antisemitic myths, such as The Protocols and the
blood libel, and called on Arabs to recognize the Holocaust and revile
Nazism. He concluded with recommendations for both Arabs and Jews for
improving relations between them.
For the articles in full, see MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 454, "Egypt's
Response to Accusations of Arab Media Antisemitism," January 3,
2003,http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/787.htm.
For more about the criticism of the series, see MEMRI Inquiry & Analysis No.
135, "Harbingers of Change in the Antisemitic Discourse in the Arab World,"
April 23, 2003, http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/854.htm.
Al-Tahrir is currently airing episodes of Horseman on a daily basis; each
episode is accompanied by a half-hour show about the series hosted by Subhi.
The channel is also slated to air a special interview with Subhi, in which
he will respond to viewers' questions regarding the series.
Following are excerpts from the series, which aired March 18-23, 2012. To
view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/3383.htm.
To read the full report, visit
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6224.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 4610
Egyptian Journalist: Jews Use Victims' Blood to Prepare Purim Sweets
In a March 14, 2012 article in the Egyptian daily Al-Wafd, columnist Fikriya
Ahmad wrote that the Jews, throughout their history, used to celebrate Purim
by wreaking murderous vengeance on non-Jews and using their slaughtered
victims' blood to make Purim sweets. She added that they are continuing this
custom by perpetrating attacks and assassinations against the Palestinians.
The following are excerpts:
The Jewish Festival of Purim Is Dedicated to Murderous Acts of Vengeance
Against Non-Jews
"In ancient times, [around] 400 BCE or earlier, groups of Jews lived in
Persia under the patronage of Ahasuerus, king of Persia and India. [These
Jews] spread evil and destruction, as well as their dishonest and
treacherous ways. Thus, they deservedly [incurred] the hatred of the state
minister Haman, who incited the king of Persia against them and killed them.
He picked a day by lottery on which to massacre the corrupt Jews and thus
rid the country of their evil. The Jews, as is their wont, resorted to the
cheapest trick [possible] and took revenge on him by ways of spying and
seduction. Knowing that Ahasuerus couldn't resist beautiful women, they sent
him one of their daughters, Esther, in order to trap and seduce him, and
eventually the two of them got married. [Esther, now] controlling the king,
caused him to quarrel with Haman, and persecuted Haman until he was
[eventually] hanged and his 10 children were killed. That is how Esther
saved her people, the Jews. Esther even persuaded the king to arm the Jews,
so they could take revenge on their Babylonian enemies. The king did so, and
[the Jews] exterminated the Babylonians, to the last one. The Jews defeated
their enemies through cunning plots and by sparking internecine wars and
quarrels."
To read the full report, visit
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6223.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 4609
Egyptian Daily: Mossad Behind Violent Incident at Port Said Soccer Match
In his February 8, 2012 column in the Egyptian daily Al-Ahram, 'Abd Al-Gaber
Ahmad 'Ali claimed that the Israeli Mossad, along with remnants of the NDP,
Egypt's former ruling party, were behind the massive brawl at the February
1, 2012 Port Said soccer match in which over 70 died and hundreds were
injured. He further claimed that the incident was part of a plan by Israel,
the U.S., and Arab countries to thwart the Egyptian revolution, undermine
security and stability in the country, and spark civil war.
The columnist also stated that Israel is implementing The Protocols of the
Elders of Zion in Egypt, which he says call for controlling peoples by means
of violence and terror, with the aim of destroying the armed Egyptian forces
and the country itself. Unemployed youth are being paid to wreak havoc in
Egypt, he said, and added that organizations and political parties that
spark fitna are being funded by the U.S. and Arab countries, and that
various media outlets, such as tabloids, are defaming the heads of the armed
forces. He criticized the media and MPs for attacking the Supreme Council of
the Armed Forces (SCAF), which he said had made the revolution and the free
elections possible, and called for supporting the SCAF until it transfers
power to civilian hands.
To read the full report, visit
http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6222.htm.
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