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March 04, 2011 BBC Focus Newsnight report on Muslim Brotherhood Yesterday, Newsnight carried a ten minute report from Egypt on the Muslim Brotherhood. The segment showcased both moderate and extremist views, while nonetheless concluding with the suggestion that the group would lean toward moderation if it came to power. Presenter Kirsty Wark's introduction cited Western fears of the organisation as the context for the investigation: 'What many in the West worry about is that the Muslim Brotherhood will emerge as the winners of the power struggle, and that the first democratic election could also be the last. So, who are the Muslim Brotherhood, and what do they want?' Just Journalism's recent analysis, 'BBC on the Muslim Brotherhood', found that while the BBC News website's coverage emphasised the allegedly moderate, pro-democracy credentials of the Islamist movement, broadcast coverage involving rigorous questioning of senior figures by BBC reporters revealed more worrying aspects of the organisation. Tim Whewell's report is indicative of both of these elements; while the interviewees showcased a variety of viewpoints, including ideologically extreme ones, the conclusion drawn was that the West should not be afraid of the Muslim Brotherhood. Read more>> The Wire Milne gives credence to Yemen claim that protests 'managed by Tel Aviv' Thurs. 3 Mar. 2011 @ 11.28 - Associate editor of The Guardian claims that allegations of the hand of Israel behind 'region-wide protest movement' will be less easy to dismiss if the US and UK arm Libya opposition. Seumas Milne's latest comment article, published online yesterday, and appearing in today's print edition of The Guardian, indicates sympathy for the conspiracy theory implicating Israel at the centre of Arab unrest across the Middle East. The concluding paragraph of, 'Intervention in Libya would poison the Arab revolution,' reads: 'The embattled US-backed Yemeni president Ali Abdallah Saleh claimed on Tuesday that the region-wide protest movement was "managed by Tel Aviv and under the supervision of Washington". That is easily dismissed as a hallucinogenic fantasy now. It would seem less so if the US and Britain were arming the Libyan opposition. The Arab revolution will be made by Arabs, or it won't be a revolution at all.' Read more>> The Wire Adrian Hamilton accepts 'Christian countries' after denouncing Jewish state Thurs. 3 Mar. 2011 @ 13.52 - Independent columnist describes Europe and US as 'Christian' countries which should defend 'co-religionists' abroad - despite previously denouncing Israel's definition as a 'Jewish' state. Writing in today's Independent, Adrian Hamilton calls for a more pro-active approach from the West to the plight of Christian communities in Muslim majority countries, following the assassination yesterday of Shahbaz Batti, the Christian minister for minorities in Pakistan. Noting in 'Bravery on one side, shame on the other' that, 'in Iraq, Coptic Egypt, Nigeria and South-east Asia, churches are being burned and religious minorities massacred because they are of a different faith', Hamilton states that: 'I never thought to say it, but it is time for Christian countries to stand up for Christian communities around the world.' Hamilton then clarifies that these 'Christian' countries include Europe and the US, and that Christian communities abroad are, therefore, 'brethren' and 'co-religionists': 'Europe, as the Americas, has every right at this point to say: "No, if you attack our brethren, that we regard as an attack on our selves."... '[W]hen it comes to it, we do have a special position toward co-religionists everywhere. There's no shame in expressing it.' Read more>> The Wire Libya suspended from UNHRC Wed. 2 Mar. 2011 @ 15.04 - Coverage of removal of Libya from the United Nations Human Rights Council fails to mention body continues to include human rights abusers. The media today covers the suspension of Libya from the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), following the continued reports of the Gaddafi regime's violence against protesters. The vote by consensus to evict Libya represents the first of its kind at the UNHRC. However, none of the coverage mentions that the UN body is infamous for including human rights abusers such as Saudi Arabia and China, and that several such regimes continue to be serving members of the organisation. The Guardian's article, from the Associated Press, gives the most sanitised descriptions of the UNHRC. 'UN suspends Libya from human rights council over violence against protesters' describes it as 'the UN's top human rights body', noting that 'the council is charged with strengthening the promotion and protection of human rights around the world'. No mention is made of the regimes with dubious human rights records which sit on the council, or how this affects its ability to protect and promote human rights. Read more>> Donate Just Journalism is an independent research organisation focused on how Israel and Middle East issues are reported in the UK media. 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