Ahlulbayt Television Network is the first exclusively English-language

Shia Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

television channel A television channel is a terrestrial frequency or virtual number over which a television station or television network is distributed. For example, in North America, "channel 2" refers to the terrestrial or cable band of 54 to 60 MHz, with ...

. The channel was launched with much fanfare on

Sky The sky is an unobstructed view upward from the surface of the Earth. It includes the atmosphere and outer space. It may also be considered a place between the ground and outer space, thus distinct from outer space. In the field of astronomy, ...

in the UK on 17 August 2009 and two months later on the

Galaxy 19 Galaxy 19 is a communications satellite owned by Intelsat located at 97° West longitude, serving the North American market. Galaxy 19 replaced Galaxy 25 which is nearing the end of its design life and has been moved to 93.1°W longitude. It was ...

platform covering North America from its London headquarters. A few months into its operations it also expanded to Atlantic Bird 4A (Nilesat) which covers the Middle East and North Africa. The channel now broadcasts by satellite only from

Astra 2G Astra 2G is one of the Astra communications satellites owned and operated by SES, launched to the Astra 28.2°E orbital position on 27 December 2014, at 21:37:49 UTC from Baikonur Cosmodrome. Astra 2G is positioned at 28.5° East (part of t ...

at 28.2°E The nonprofit religious channel, whose name is Arabic for the 'Holy Household', referring to the progeny of the Islamic prophet, Muhammad, is staffed by British professionals from various backgrounds. In an interview in 2004 with a Kuwaiti magazine, Sayed Mahdi al-Modarresi had announced his hopes to launch the channel to "show the true, undistorted nature of Islam and Islamic civilization to the West". Ahlulbayt TV frequently features prominent Shia Muslims scholars and intellectuals including Sayed Fadhel Milani, Sayed Mahdi Modarresi, Sayed Mustafa Qazwini, Sayed Mohammad Rizvi, Sayed Mohammed Mousawi, Rebecca Masterton, Zahra Al Alawi,

Amina Inloes Amina Inloes is an American scholar, researcher, educator, public speaker, translator and a Shi'ite Muslim. She has written several books on the subject of Shi'ism. Personal life Inloes was born in Irvine, California, United States. Education ...

, as well as others, and also broadcast live video feeds from the Holy City of

Karbala Karbala or Kerbala ( ar, كَرْبَلَاء, Karbalāʾ , , also ;) is a city in central Iraq, located about southwest of Baghdad, and a few miles east of Lake Milh, also known as Razzaza Lake. Karbala is the capital of Karbala Governorat ...

. The network's line-up includes several live call-in shows featuring guests who are invited to discuss religious and social matters. The channel, which seems to enjoy great popularity amongst Western-born Muslim youths, was also featured in Shelina Janmohamed's book Generation M: Young Muslims Changing the World. The channel preaches moderation and has several shows dedicated to women, presented by females from various backgrounds. "Reverts World" is also a weekly show dedicated to highlighting the challenges faced by converts. Its stated aim is to "serve the new generation of Muslims living in the West, addressing contemporary issues through cutting-edge programming and world-class shows" In early 2010 the channel launched its on-screen news ticker which frequently condemned "terrorist attacks" and extremist statements. To refocus the channel towards its religious and cultural ethos, the news ticker has since been taken down. The channel's financial backing comes from viewers' donations and frequently asks viewers to partner with it in addition to ads and sponsorships.

Programming

Current shows

References

External links

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Council of European Jamaats Press Release
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ahlulbayt TV Islamic television networks English-language television stations Shia media