Lebanon warns France of action if it suspends Al Manar broadcasts

Lebanese media officials yesterday warned France not to suspend broadcasts of Al Manar, the television arm of Lebanon's militant group Hezbollah, saying authorities may be forced to reciprocate against French stations.

France's broadcast watchdog, the CSA audiovisual authority, said on Tuesday it would seek to penalise Al Manar TV over a December 2 broadcast in French that accused Israel of crimes against humanity.

The CSA wrote to the Lebanese Communication Group, which airs Al Manar, indicating that such comments could violate French law banning hate speech. Penalties could include a suspension of Al Manar broadcasts or a revocation of its license, as well as fines. A decision could come as early as today.

Al Manar has defended its position, saying it did not use the words in question with bad intent.

At a solidarity meeting attended by Lebanese journalists and politicians, including leftist and pro-Hezbollah members, speakers accused the Israeli embassy in Paris of orchestrating the campaign to silence Al Manar and claimed French officials were yielding to Israeli pressure.

Israel seeks to "close any window that transmits the truth about the Arab-Israeli conflict to Europe and France, because the Israeli aggressor fears the judgment of public opinion there," said Hassan Falha, the director general of the Information Ministry.

Falha warned that Leb-anon may implement "the principle of reciprocity" and reconsider all media agreements signed with French authorities. He did not elaborate. His words echoed those of Information Minister Elie Ferzli, who on Thursday said Lebanon "would not remain silent" in case of French measures against Al Manar.

The head of the state-appointed National Media Council, Abdul Hadi Mahfouz, told the meeting yesterday that criticising Israeli policies was different from being anti-Semitic or anti-Jewish. "Al Manar does not instigate against Judaism and Jews. ... But how can Al Manar remain silent about the policies of killing and destruction?" he asked.

Mohammad Ba'albaki, head of the Lebanese Press Syndicate, an independent body that represents Leb-anese newspapers, said Al Manar enjoys unanimous support in Lebanon "as a platform for resistance and steadfastness" against Israel.

Targeting Al Manar, he said, was "a dangerous precedent that threatens the rights of the Arab media in the world." He warned that measures to halt Al Manar broadcasts could tarnish relations between France and the Arab and Muslim world.

Al Manar broadcasts focus on the Arab-Israeli conflict and the station considers itself a voice for Arabs and Muslims. The station also runs clips from the Palestinian-Israeli battlefield and videos glorifying past attacks by the Hezbollah group against Israel.