’Israel’: Lebanon’s $4 billion to Sisi...the price of blocking Al-Manar?

Yahya Dabbouk

"Israel" did not hide its delight following the Egyptian satellite company's decision to bring down Al-Manar TV's broadcast from its satellite "Nilesat" [see page 24]. ["Israel"] pointed out that the decision is part of the circle against Hizbullah - led by Saudi Arabia and the "moderate states" in the region - in their attempt to besiege the party not only in direct warfare in the Syrian battlefield, but also in the Lebanese arena, via the procedures and measures that are to be implemented in the wake of [the party] being labelled ‘terrorist' by the Gulf Cooperation Council early last March.

Yesterday, the Hebrew Channel 1 pointed out that the Egyptian decision to stop broadcasting Al-Manar is aimed at raising the level of confrontation between "the moderate axis" led by Saudi Arabia, and the axis led by Iran, where the arenas of confrontation are concentrated in Syria, Yemen, and also in Lebanon. It also explained that the resolution comes in addition to another decision, which came within the context of the same war, and which was released three months ago, in the form of ceasing the broadcast of Al-Manar, which is "very popular in the Arab world", from Arabsat.

The "Israeli" channel confirmed that the decision of "Nilesat" is linked to the visit of the Saudi King Salman bin Abdul Aziz to Cairo, during which he will meet Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, who is drowning in debt and eager for Saudi money.

According to the channel, what Sisi will receive in exchange for blocking "Al-Manar" from the Egyptian satellite could be the former Saudi donation to the Lebanese army, which Riyadh had decided to undo, and which is estimated at four billion US dollars.

In Lebanon, the Egyptian decision provoked reactions of denunciations by a number of political and social forces, while the majority of Hizbullah's opponents resorted to silence. The party issued a statement condemning the "unjust decision", and viewed it as "a flagrant violation of freedom of opinion and an expression of the attempt to silence the resistance and truth, which are embodied by this channel, [a channel] which carries the following clear logo which it applies very strictly: The channel of the Resistance and Liberation...The channel of the Arabs and Muslims".

It also considered "this rejected measure by the Egyptian telecommunication association as being far away from what has been hoped for Egypt during this stage, and the role which it could play in correcting the course of events in the region, and [this measure] expresses the complete alignment of the attack launched by some Arab regimes on the resistance in all fields, including the media sector".

The party stressed that "the media in support of the resistance in Lebanon and Palestine have been, and will remain the voice that call out the truth, and the defenders of the path that rejects oppression, and no unjust measures will succeed in suppressing this voice and silencing it, and all media outlets will not be able to execute this outlet because it has overcome all prohibitive and preventative measures, and it has the qualifications which guarantee that its voice will continue to reverberate in all squares and fields".

In addition, it called upon the "concerned officials within the Egyptian telecommunications to immediately backtrack from the decision, in line with the right to freedom of expression and a commitment to the laws governing the relationship between the association and media organizations contracted with them". It also called upon "the Egyptian authorities to press for the abolition of these decisions, which Egyptians first and foremost know that they come in the service of "Israeli" demands and goals".

Source: Al-Akhbar, Translated and Edited by website team