Saudi Arabia has come under fire once again after a popular Ramadan series broadcast on the kingdom’s MBC channel attacked Palestinians and encouraged normalization with Israel.
Episode 2 of series “Exit 7” brings together superstar Saudi actors Nasser Al-Qasabi and Rashid Al-Shamrani in a scene which sees them discuss dealing with Israelis for business expansion purposes.
This was on MBC, the Pan-Arab network majority owned by the Saudi gov. The Gulf's normalization with Israel is ongoing and known, but they still need to find a way to prime people for the heel turn. How? Focus on the supposed "ungratefulness" of Palestine.https://t.co/hnR9cka8vU
— Séamus Malekafzali (@Seamus_Malek) April 27, 2020
Al-Qasabi’s character shuts down the debate noting “Israelis are enemies”, only to be told, “the real enemy is the one who shows no gratitude for your stance, dismisses your sacrifices and curses you day and night, more than the Israelis”.
Al-Shamrani’s character continues to say: “We entered wars for the sake of Palestine, we cut oil for Palestine and the day it became an authority, we paid its salaries even though we [the Saudi people] have more right over this money. Yet they take every opportunity to attack Saudi Arabia”.
The clip was quickly shared across social media platforms with activists across the board outraged over Saudi Arabia’s attempt to manipulate millions in its ongoing bid to normalize relations with Israel.
Gaza’s governing Hamas authority condemned the normalization of ties with Israel via popular television soaps, saying the Israeli “occupation is the central enemy of the Arab nation because it constitutes a threat to all its components.”
“Palestine will remain the cause of the whole Arab nation,” Hamas said in a statement, noting voices that encourage normalisation with Israel are mere anomalies.
Like most Arab countries, Saudi Arabia does not have diplomatic ties with Israel. However, Gulf Arab monarchies, which share Israel’s enmity towards Iran, have made a number of recent moves hinting at warmer ties with the Jewish state.
(Al-Araby Al-Jadeed, PC, Social Media)
