CAIRO: Renowned Egyptian journalist and talk show host Hamdy Kandil reportedly received an offer from Hezbollah’s official satellite channel Al-Manar to air his show “Qalam Rosas.
Kandil told Al-Masry Al-Youm that the channel’s head made him the offer following Kandil’s speech on the coverage of the assault on Gaza by Arab satellite channels at the Arab Networks conference this week in Lebanon.
“It’s a bit early to accept this offer as my contract with Al-Libia [channel] is still ongoing, he said.
Kandil’s show was discontinued from several networks due to his bold analysis of Middle Eastern politics and incisive criticism of Arab leaders.
His popular show “Ra’ees Tahrir first aired on Egyptian terrestrial television. When it was halted, Kandil moved on to Arab Radio and Television (ART), renaming the show “Maa Hamdy Kandil, after which it moved to the Dubai satellite channel four years ago under the title “Qalam Rosas.
Yet, in December 2008 the show was abruptly canceled, forcing Kandil to move to Al-Libia, a Libyan channel linked to one of the sons of Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi, Saif Al-Islam. But last month, Al-Libia was brought under the control of the state broadcaster Al-Jamihiriya Radio’s General Authority, according to a Libyan government official.
Officials declined to give reasons for the sudden government takeover, but Kandil’s show was canceled again after the channel received “instructions from high-ranking Libyan officials due to pressures from Egypt, Kandil previously told Al-Masry Al-Youm.
Diaa Rashwan, political analyst at Al-Ahram Center for Political and Strategic Studies, was still surprised at the move noting that “Kandil’s shows are never live; they are always recorded and censored, he said.
“He is a great Egyptian journalist and is highly credible, he is bold and gives constructive criticism . people listen to him and take what he says seriously, which is why he poses a threat, he said.
