Rabea TV ( ar, الفضائية رابعة قناة), also called the revolution channel, is a
Muslim Brotherhood
The Society of the Muslim Brothers ( ar, جماعة الإخوان المسلمين'' ''), better known as the Muslim Brotherhood ( ', is a transnational Sunni Islamist organization founded in Egypt by Islamic scholar and schoolteacher Hassan ...
oppositional satellite TV network that broadcasts its stream from Turkey, but targets Egyptian viewers.
Background
The name of the network, Rabea, means the fourth, which is why its logo features a hand holding up four fingers. The name derives from a mosque and square in Cairo, where some of the largest groups of Muslim Brotherhood supporters would meet and protest. At one point there was a sit in there that lasted forty days before being dispersed. This sign symbolizes solidarity for those protestors during the anti-coup movement for the overthrow of
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Recep may refer to:
People Surname
* Aziz Recep (born 1992), German-Greek footballer
* Sibel Recep (born 1987), Swedish pop singer
Given name
* Recep Adanır (born 1929), Turkish footballer
* Recep Akdağ (born 1960), Turkish physician and poli ...
.http://www.alarabiya.net/ar/arab-and-world/egypt/2013/12/05/-%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A8%D8%B9%D8%A9-%D9%82%D9%86%D8%A7%D8%A9-%D8%A5%D8%AE%D9%88%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1-%D8%AA%D8%B7%D9%84%D9%82-%D8%A8%D8%AB%D9%87%D8%A7-%D9%85%D9%86-%D8%A7%D8%B3%D8%B7%D9%86%D8%A8%D9%88%D9%84.html
The network, established by the Muslim Brotherhood, launched in 2013 in Turkey. Rabea TV announced in 2013 that it would begin broadcasting with the support of the Turkish State. According to local
Egyptian media
Mass media in Egypt are highly influential in Egypt and in the Arab World, attributed to its large audience and its historically TV and film industry supplies to the Arab-speaking world.
A period of ease on media marked the last years of Hosni Mu ...
, Turkey"s National Security Service (MIT) founded the network under the leadership of
Hakan Fidan
Hakan Fidan (born 1968) is a retired Turkish army sergeant major, educator, diplomat and the Head of Turkey's National Intelligence Organization.
Career
After a first degree in management and political sciences at University of Maryland Univers ...
, MIT's undersecretary of the intelligence service. In early talks about Rabea TV, a spokesperson for the Muslim Brotherhood during Morsi's presidency indicated his fears that this channel's establishment could lead to a new crisis in Egyptian-Turkish relations. Turkish politician Faruk Logoglu expressed similar sentiments when he stated that Turkey's hosting of networks that terrorize the Egyptian people and threaten foreigners has placed Turkey in a questionable position in international platforms.
Al Rabea TV broadcasts from
Istanbul
Istanbul ( , ; tr, İstanbul ), formerly known as Constantinople ( grc-gre, Κωνσταντινούπολις; la, Constantinopolis), is the List of largest cities and towns in Turkey, largest city in Turkey, serving as the country's economic, ...
, and its content is known to have an Islamist slant and pushes Muslim Brotherhood propaganda. It uses the slogan, "The Pulse of Freedom" as self-promotion. Despite Rabea TV being aired from Turkey, Turkish government has denied that any Muslim Brotherhood affiliate TV stations are being broadcast from Turkey.
Controversial content
The network has aired its fair share of aggressive and violent content, and is known to incite public opinion on violence towards state, military, and civil institutions. On air, a cleric named Salama Abd al-Qawi issued a statement of encouragement for anyone who would assassinate Egyptian President Abdel Fatteh al-Sisi stating that whoever got the job done would be doing a good deed.
Also, on one of Rabea TV's programs, a threatening warning statement was broadcast from a group called the Revolutionary Group Leadership, telling Westerners and Western investments in
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediter ...
to leave the country or they would be targeted soon. The station also aired content that police and soldiers in attendance of a western economic conference that was to take place in
Cairo
Cairo ( ; ar, القاهرة, al-Qāhirah, ) is the capital of Egypt and its largest city, home to 10 million people. It is also part of the largest urban agglomeration in Africa, the Arab world and the Middle East: The Greater Cairo metro ...
would be killed.
Followers
The network has
YouTube
YouTube is a global online video platform, online video sharing and social media, social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by ...
and
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
pages. Its YouTube page, founded in 2015 and featuring both a live stream and past videos, is subscribed to by over 1,100 users and has had a total of 160,112 views. Its Facebook page has been active since 2013, where Rabea TV is listed as an alternative global media network. Rabea TV describes itself as an outlet to provide contemporary political issues through the Islamic perspective, highlighting issues of the Islamic world.
Additionally, it says that it seeks to achieve the demands of the Arab revolutions by building a relationship between the viewer and symbols of the Islamic intellectual.
The page's background photo is a picture of former Muslim Brotherhood President, Mohammed Morsi, with the channel's logo as the profile picture. It frequently posts graphic photos and controversial Islamist statements, including numerous statements against Egypt's current president al-Sisi and praises of the demoted former president, Mohammed Morsi and of terrorist linked Muslim Brotherhood founder,
Yusuf al-Qaradawi
Yusuf al-Qaradawi ( ar, يوسف القرضاوي, translit=Yūsuf al-Qaraḍāwī; or ''Yusuf al-Qardawi''; 9 September 1926 – 26 September 2022) was an Egyptian Islamic scholar based in Doha, Qatar, and chairman of the International Union of ...
.
Ownership
Rabea TV is owned by Qatari businessman Hashim bin Mohammed al-Awadhi. Al-Awadhi is the head of the media department for the controversial Qatari charity, Eid charity, also called the
Sheikh Eid bin Mohammad al Thani Charitable Association
Sheikh Eid Bin Mohammad Al Thani Charitable Association is a Qatari charitable organizations established in 1995 in Doha, Qatar. The organization was named after Sheikh Eid Ibn Mohammad ibn Thani ibn Jasim ibn Mohammad Al Thani (1922-1994). The U ...
. This charity has a reputation for backing the Muslim Brotherhood, globally designated terrorists and terrorist financiers, and
al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
members.
Al-Awadhi's son was killed as part of
ISIS
Isis (; ''Ēse''; ; Meroitic: ''Wos'' 'a''or ''Wusa''; Phoenician: 𐤀𐤎, romanized: ʾs) was a major goddess in ancient Egyptian religion whose worship spread throughout the Greco-Roman world. Isis was first mentioned in the Old Kingd ...
's convoy of martyrs in 2015 near Kobani, Syria. Furthermore, al-Awadhi's Twitter account is known to display graphic violent content that is in support of the Muslim Brotherhood and terrorist advances.
Current standing
Rabea TV has weakened significantly in its standing, and has been on the verge of
bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor ...
. This is due in part to the recent decline in Turkey's popularity in the
Middle East
The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
based on polls conducted of 16 regional states as well as negative attention from foreign entities. Sources have reported that the Rabea TV's controversial standing has left it vulnerable to threats legal prosecution to stop broadcasting. A French satellite company has indicated its plans to discontinue the channel after it received notice of the network's association as a terrorist channel.