Between terrorism and love stories, Ramadan and TV ratings

Jerusalem (AsiaNews) – Undeniably, the ninth month in the Muslim calendar –Ramadan– is a holy month, a month of fasting, abstinence and prayer, but it is also peak season for Arab television and Ayyash, a TV series based on the life of a Hamas bomb maker killed by the Israelis, could become a runaway hit among Arab TV viewers.

Terrorism, religious fundamentalism, fanaticism but also love stories are the main ingredients in this Ramadan's TV schedules.  Not only does it offer TV executives bigger audiences and higher ratings it also gives terrorists the opportunity to influence schedules.

One TV series portrays the life of Yihye Ayyash, aka 'The engineer' for his bomb making skills.  Between 1994 and 1996 he murdered about 100 Israelis until the Mossad booby-trapped his cell phone. Among Palestinians he has become some sort of legend like Kurdish Salah al-Din who expelled the Crusaders from Jerusalem.

For Palestinian writer Salah al-Bardawil, as long as it presented an 'honourable' portrait of the 'hero', the series is a good thing "because it supports the forces fighting against Israeli and American oppression and aggression in Palestine, Iraq and the Arab and Muslim region".

Nut gore and glory are not the only themes on the menu. Love stories had a place too; however, this time, without a happy ending. Muslim fundamentalists were in fact able to persuade broadcasters to cancel al-Tareeq ila Kabul (The road to Kabul), a musalsal (soap opera) not particularly liked by the Mujahedeen Brigades of Iraq and Syria who warned "all those who contributed to making this musalsal –actors, producers, cameramen– if it contains insults to the Taliban."

The controversial 30-episode Jordanian production cost US$ 3 million. It told a story of love between an Afghan woman and an Arab man under the Talebans and was scheduled to run on several Arab TV networks, including those of Syria and Iraq.

During Ramadan, TV rules the time between iftar, the evening meal, and sohour, the pre-dawn repast. However, for some, networks tend to schedule low brow programmes. In Pakistan's North-West Province, authorities want to shut down movie theatres and black out TV since "they only broadcast filth" during the holy month. But they have to wait for Islamabad's approval. (MA)

• palestine
• jordan
• islam
• ramadan
• muslims
• islamic
• fundamentalism
• hamas
• terrorism
• talebans