Iraqi cleric Moqtada Al Sadr has urged Saudi-owned MBC Group not to broadcast a TV series scheduled to run during Ramadan, which depicts the life of Umayyad caliph Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan.
Muawiyah is reportedly the most expensive Arab TV drama series in history at a cost of $75 million.
“Broadcasting such series is contrary to the new, moderate policies pursued by the brotherly country of Saudi Arabia,” Mr Al Sadr wrote on Twitter on Tuesday evening.
“There is no need to hurt the feelings of your Muslim brothers in the east and west of the earth.”
MBC Group is the biggest broadcaster in the Middle East and North Africa. The show marks the directorial TV debut of Palestinian-Egyptian director Tariq Al Arian and is scripted by journalist Khaled Salah.
Production began in July in the Tunisian city of Hammamet with other scenes filmed in Kairouan, also in Tunisia.
The character of Muawiyah is played by Syrian actor Loujain Ismail, after veteran Palestinian artist Ali Suleiman withdrew from the role.
Actresses attached to project include Asma Jalal, Aisha bin Ahmed and Jamila Chihi, playing Muawiyah's wives. Jordanian actor Iyad Nassar portrays Imam Ali bin Abi Talib.
The Umayyad Caliphate ruled a large part of what is now the Middle East from 660 to 750 and was ruled under the first caliph Muawiyah. His son Yazid bin Muawiyah ruled as the second Umayyad caliph — the Prophet Mohammed's grandson, Imam Hussein, protested against his caliphate.
Shiites mark Ashura annually to mourn the death of Imam Hussein bin Ali, who was killed in a battle outside Karbala in modern-day Iraq in 680 AD by Yazid bin Muawiyah's army.
Although MBC has yet to respond publicly to Mr Sadr’s statements, MBC Media Solutions (MMS), the commercial arm of MBC Group, announced the company’s highly anticipated Ramadan 2023 line-up this week in Riyadh and Dubai.
“We all know by now the impact and reach of Ramadan and we are proud of our role as MMS in enabling brands to be a part of this special season’s stories and narratives year on year,” said MMS chief executive Ahmed Al Sahhaf in Riyadh.
Shows focusing on early Islamic figures following the Umayyad and Rashidun dynasties have been dramatised for TV in the past. Directed by the late and influential Syrian filmmaker Hatem Ali, MBC broadcast Saqr Quraish in 2002, tracing the rise and fall of the 7th and 8th-century Umayyad dynasty.
In 2012, MBC produced and broadcast the pan-Arab production Farouk Omar based on the life of Omar ibn Al Khattab, the second caliph of the Rashidun Caliphate.
Tips for job-seekers
- Do not submit your application through the Easy Apply button on LinkedIn. Employers receive between 600 and 800 replies for each job advert on the platform. If you are the right fit for a job, connect to a relevant person in the company on LinkedIn and send them a direct message.
- Make sure you are an exact fit for the job advertised. If you are an HR manager with five years’ experience in retail and the job requires a similar candidate with five years’ experience in consumer, you should apply. But if you have no experience in HR, do not apply for the job.
David Mackenzie, founder of recruitment agency Mackenzie Jones Middle East
COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
What vitamins do we know are beneficial for living in the UAE
Vitamin D: Highly relevant in the UAE due to limited sun exposure; supports bone health, immunity and mood.
Vitamin B12: Important for nerve health and energy production, especially for vegetarians, vegans and individuals with absorption issues.
Iron: Useful only when deficiency or anaemia is confirmed; helps reduce fatigue and support immunity.
Omega-3 (EPA/DHA): Supports heart health and reduces inflammation, especially for those who consume little fish.
'Ghostbusters: From Beyond'
Director: Jason Reitman
Starring: Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace
Rating: 2/5
Who's who in Yemen conflict
Houthis: Iran-backed rebels who occupy Sanaa and run unrecognised government
Yemeni government: Exiled government in Aden led by eight-member Presidential Leadership Council
Southern Transitional Council: Faction in Yemeni government that seeks autonomy for the south
Habrish 'rebels': Tribal-backed forces feuding with STC over control of oil in government territory
Will the pound fall to parity with the dollar?
The idea of pound parity now seems less far-fetched as the risk grows that Britain may split away from the European Union without a deal.
Rupert Harrison, a fund manager at BlackRock, sees the risk of it falling to trade level with the dollar on a no-deal Brexit. The view echoes Morgan Stanley’s recent forecast that the currency can plunge toward $1 (Dh3.67) on such an outcome. That isn’t the majority view yet – a Bloomberg survey this month estimated the pound will slide to $1.10 should the UK exit the bloc without an agreement.
New Prime Minister Boris Johnson has repeatedly said that Britain will leave the EU on the October 31 deadline with or without an agreement, fuelling concern the nation is headed for a disorderly departure and fanning pessimism toward the pound. Sterling has fallen more than 7 per cent in the past three months, the worst performance among major developed-market currencies.
“The pound is at a much lower level now but I still think a no-deal exit would lead to significant volatility and we could be testing parity on a really bad outcome,” said Mr Harrison, who manages more than $10 billion in assets at BlackRock. “We will see this game of chicken continue through August and that’s likely negative for sterling,” he said about the deadlocked Brexit talks.
The pound fell 0.8 per cent to $1.2033 on Friday, its weakest closing level since the 1980s, after a report on the second quarter showed the UK economy shrank for the first time in six years. The data means it is likely the Bank of England will cut interest rates, according to Mizuho Bank.
The BOE said in November that the currency could fall even below $1 in an analysis on possible worst-case Brexit scenarios. Options-based calculations showed around a 6.4 per cent chance of pound-dollar parity in the next one year, markedly higher than 0.2 per cent in early March when prospects of a no-deal outcome were seemingly off the table.
Bloomberg
Andor
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Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
Company%20Profile
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The National's picks
4.35pm: Tilal Al Khalediah
5.10pm: Continous
5.45pm: Raging Torrent
6.20pm: West Acre
7pm: Flood Zone
7.40pm: Straight No Chaser
8.15pm: Romantic Warrior
8.50pm: Calandogan
9.30pm: Forever Young
Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
