Israeli-funded films face ban

Manama : The House of Representatives will vote this Tuesday on imposing a ban on Israeli-funded movies in Bahrain. The films include movies and all recorded forms of media funded by Israel. In their next regular meeting on Tuesday, the MPs will vote on a report by the Council’s Services Committee endorsing a proposal to add a new paragraph to the existing law, banning media content that is funded or produced by Israel.

The committee mentioned in its report that the proposal aims to reaffirm Bahrain’s stance to reject any form of normalisation with Israel by banning all movies and media content that’s financed by Israel, or participated in by Israelis. The committee discussed the proposal with several authorities before issuing its supporting report. Information Affairs Ministry had requested the committee to reconsider the proposal, as “it doesn’t come in line with the joint Arab and GCC agreements that aim to support the Palestinian cause and the Arab Peace Initiative and peace in the Middle East process”.

“The League of Arab States had decided to end severing relations of the second and third degrees with Israel,” the ministry’s reply to the committee said, confirming that the ministry is committed to implementing the Arab and GCC decision to sever first degree relations with Israel.