Update: Dish Network Removed Dubai TV In May – Before Dubai TV, Other Arab Channels Began Airing Antisemitic Ramadan Drama Series 'Khaybar'

Update: On July 22, 2013, the day after the publication of this report, MEMRI was contacted by Dish Network, which informed us that it has not carried Dubai TV since May 2013. MEMRI originally reported that Dubai Satellite Channel, aka Dubai TV, is also viewed in the U.S. and is carried by Dish Network.

(NOTE: THIS PAGE WAS REMOVED FROM THE USDISH NETWORK WEBSITE ON JULY 23, 2013)

Following the publication of this report, MEMRI was contacted by a Dish Network official, who informed us that "DISH does not carry any network that has announced plans to air the Khaybar miniseries. This includes Dubai TV — we had carried that channel, but removed it from our lineup" in May 2013. The information on the website, the official said, "was out-of-date information,” and added that the company is "working to correct the record with our partners."

During the month of Ramadan, Arab television channels customarily air drama and comedy television specials after the breaking of the fast every evening. A drama series airing this Ramadan is titled "Khaybar," which is the name of the Jewish community in the Arabian Peninsula conquered by the Prophet Muhammad in 628 CE. The series depicts the producers' view of relations between Muslims and the Arab tribes of Medina, as well as with the Jews of Medina and Khaybar, leading up to the Jews' expulsion from the latter.

According to Muslim tradition, in 628 CE, Muhammad expelled the two Jewish tribes of Medina – Banu Qaynuqa and Banu Nadir – from the city. Another Jewish tribe, Banu Qurayza, was completely destroyed – all its men were executed and the women, children, and property were distributed as booty among the Muslims. Muhammad also defeated the Jews of Khaybar (including the Jews of Banu Nadir, who settled there after their expulsion from Medina), but allowed them to stay there and continue working their lands on the condition that they give half of their crop yields to the Muslims of Medina. During the time of the second Muslim Caliph, 'Omar ibn Al-Khattab, the Jews were expelled from Khaybar and their lands were divided among the Muslims.[1]

Thus, it should also be noted that the term "Khaybar" is also a symbol of the Jews' ultimate defeat by the Muslims; chants of "Khaybar, Khaybar, oh Jews, the army of Muhammad shall return" are commonly heard at Islamist and jihadi gatherings.

The "Khaybar" Series

According to Arab media reports in early 2013, the show "focuses on the social, economic, and religious lives of the Jews, including their politics, their plots, and the way they managed and controlled the [Aws and Khazraj Arab] tribes." It was also reported that the show portrays "the [Jews'] hostility and hatred towards others, along with their treacherous nature, their repeated betrayals, and their despicable racism."[2]

As MEMRI noted on July 10, 2013 in Inquiry and Analysis No. 995, The Image Of The Jew In The Ramadan TV Show 'Khaybar' – Treacherous, Hateful Of The Other, Scheming, And Corrupt, it was reported that the series would air on Dubai TV, Dream TV (Egypt), Al-Iraqiyya TV (Iraq), Algerian Channel 3, Atlas TV (Algeria), Qatar TV, and UAE TV, and other channels. However, it is currently airing on Dubai TV, Dream 3 TV (Egypt), and three Algerian channels: Channel 3, Atlas, and the Algerian Koran channel.[3]

MEMRI has been following the filming, production, and airing of this series since March 2013; see, in addition to the abovementioned report, also MEMRI Special Dispatch No.5351, New Arab Antisemitic TV Series: Jews Of Khaybar Instigate War Between Arab Tribes, July 3, 2013; and MEMRI TV Clip No. 3902, Actors in Arab TV Series Khaybar Make Antisemitic Remarks, March 14-May 13, 2013.

The MEMRI report The Image Of The Jew In The Ramadan TV Show 'Khaybar' – Treacherous, Hateful Of The Other, Scheming, And Corrupt also notes that Arab and especially Egyptian media coverage of the show's filming and production have been tinged with antisemitism; for example, the Egyptian daily Al-Fajr's June 20, 2013 report on the wrapping up of filming was titled "The Treachery Of The Jews Ends Next Sunday." Director Muhammad Aziziya stated that the series "sheds light on the nature of the Jews... exposes their hatred of Islam and the vindictive nature that has ruled them throughout history" and added that "neither Egyptians nor Arabs need this show to justify their hatred of Zionism." Screenwriter Yusri Al-Gindi said, "The Jews... still act according to their nature, despite the passing generations; they corrupt any society in which they live, and therefore no regime can protect them with any contract or agreement." He continued, "The crisis in the Arab world offers the best proof of this, and this is where the show gets its current relevance."

In MEMRI TV Clip No. 3902, Actors in Arab TV Series Khaybar Make Antisemitic Remarks, March 14, 2013, actor Mustafa Hashish said, "I play one of the most prominent Jews, who hatches plots and schemes. He is, of course, very miserly – the purely typical Jew... So this gives you an idea what the Jews are made of." Actor Ahmad 'Abd Al-Halim said, "I play one of the Jewish characters, who demonstrates the behavior of the Jewish human being. All he thinks about is accumulating money." Actor Ahmad Maher said, "History has shown that the Jews are a people with no moral values, who do not honor their agreements."

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