The British-based al-Hiwar TV provides a platform for Ibrahim al-Madhoun, a member of Hamas’ department of national relations, who operates from Turkey

Overview

• On February 28, 2022, a conference was held of the “popular committee of the Palestinian dispersal” (which is affiliated with Hamas and represents the Palestinians abroad). Among the participants were Dr. Azzam al-Tamimi, a British subject from Hebron, who is director of London’s al-Hiwar TV in Arabic. He exploited a stay in Turkey to broadcast a series of panel discussions from Istanbul. Ibrahim al-Madhoun, a member of Hamas’ department of national relations, was a guest on several programs; al-Madhoun is close to Yahya al-Sinwar and has lived in Turkey since 2018. Al-Madhoun is known for his extremist positions, statements to media outlets and written work, all of which follow official Hamas propaganda, including the call for terrorist attacks against Israel. He is also critical of Britain. He has often been interviewed by al-Hiwar TV and al-Araby al-Jadeed TV, which also broadcasts from London.
• Al-Hiwar TV broadcasts from London via satellite and also has a YouTube channel, a Twitter account and a Facebook page. The channel is affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood and appeals to Muslims all over the world, especially in Europe, broadcasting Islamist/anti-Israeli propaganda. Al-Tamimi belongs to a group of propaganda activists operating in Britain whose objective to inculcate Hamas propaganda, while taking care not to reveal their membership in the movement. By providing a platform for Ibrahim al-Madhoun and other Hamas operatives, al-Hiwar TV challenges the November 2021 British decision to designate Hamas’ political bureau as a terrorist organization.^[1]

Al-Hiwar TV Broadcasts from Turkey

• On February 28, 2022, a conference of the “popular national committee for the Palestinian dispersal”^[2] was held in Istanbul. Participants included Dr. Azzam al-Tamimi, a British subject originally from Hebron. He is the director of the London-based Arabic-language al-Hiwar TV channel. During the conference al-Hiwar TV broadcast a number of panel discussions from Istanbul. One of the February 24, 2022 programs was the regular current events show called “Dialogue in London.” It was broadcast on a backdrop of a London scene, creating the impression that the participants were there and not in Istanbul. Ibrahim al-Madhoun was interviewed on several such programs; he is a member of Hamas’ department of national relations and lives in Turkey. He also documented his participation on his Twitter account.

   
Dr. Azzam al-Tamimi (far right), participating in a panel discussion broadcast from Turkey.

• The programs from Istanbul dealt with the following issues:
  • An analysis of the war in Ukraine: al-Madhoun stressed the weakness of the United States and the West, and the Palestinians’ admiration for strong leaders, like Putin.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7f33qNCfVyE

• An analysis of the situation in the Palestinian dispersal as it relates to the meeting in Istanbul.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0lZSe47qxTA

• Two analyses of the weakness of the Palestinian Authority and PLO, and the need for a new Palestinian leadership:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BULPzThFEbE https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CDs_jByNzLs

• In the past al-Madhoun was particularly critical of Britain. For example, when Britain designated Hamas’ political bureau as a terrorist organization in November 2021, he said,

“Including Hamas in the British list of terrorist organizations honors our movement and is a sign we are moving in the right direction. Because what can you expect from the country that founded and supported the [Zionist] entity? Britain is weak and its decisions don’t hurt us in the least. It is proof that relying on appeasing the West is nothing but an illusion. They discriminate [against us] and don’t have the standards necessary to determine such categories. It is nothing more than obvious, useless support for Israel” (November 19, 2021).

• On another occasion he said,

“We have nothing to be ashamed of because of Britain’s decision. We will stand up to Britain, the same Britain that was a power and now is nothing but a miserable puppet in the hands of Israel. The declaration in London of Hamas as a terrorist organization will not silence our weapons. We will continue to serve our people and adopt all forms of resistance [i.e. terrorist activity]. The victors of the “Sword of Jerusalem” [i.e., Operation Guardian of the Walls] don’t fear decisions from the Foreign Office of a country whose power has waned and which has been pushed to the sidelines” (November 20, 2021).

• After the terrorist attack in the Old City of Jerusalem that led to the death of an Israeli (November 21, 2021), he said,

“Hamas will not stop its acts of sacrifice and will continue its armed resistance, gathering force and manufacturing weapons. During Sword of Jerusalem some of the power of al-Qassam [i.e., the Izz al-Din Qassam Brigades] was used and the activity in Jerusalem is the continuation of the wielding of the sword. The activity was carried out with weapons manufactured in Britain as a message to London and its Home Secretary that the resistance isn’t worried and the decision won’t make us stop. The opposite it true, it will only increase our determination and provoke us into continuing to march forward” (November 21, 2021).

^[1] For further information, see the December 7, 2021 bulletin, "Palestinian condemnations of the British decision to outlaw Hamas' political bureau." ↑
^[2] The committee began operations in Istanbul in 2017, and holds a conference there every year. Its objective is to motivate popular national activity for Palestinians in the dispersal. The most recent conference, held at the end of February 2022, attracted about 1,200 Palestinian representatives from fifty countries (popular committee website, March 7, 2022). The Palestinian Authority (PA) leadership does not participate in the conference, which is known for its pro-Islamist tendencies and criticism of the PA. 

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