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Iranian documentary praises Sadat’s killers
 Muhammad Anwar el Sadat (December 25, 1918 - October 6, 1981) Photo IPD |
After 30 years with no diplomatic ties, Egypt and Iran had been making overtures toward rapprochement in recent months. However, an Iranian documentary praising the killers of Egyptian President Anwar Sadat has threatened to set those efforts back.
Aired on Iranian television in early July, Assassination of a Pharaoh sparked outrage from the Egyptian government and the late president’s family. Iran has repeatedly glorified Sadat’s killer, Khaled El-Islambouli, installing a large mural of the assassin and renaming a thoroughfare in Tehran after him.
Relations between the two countries started to unravel in 1979 with Iran’s Islamic Revolution, and deteriorated further when Sadat allowed the deposed Shah, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, to spend his exile in Egypt. After his death, Pahlavi was given a state funeral and buried in a prominent Cairo mosque, further angering the then Iranian leader Grand Ayatollah Rouhollah Khomeini.
When Egypt recognized Israel in 1980, Iran formally severed ties.
Tensions eased in January 2008 with bilateral visits between cabinet-level officials, which culminated a meeting between Iran’s parliament speaker Gholam Ali Hadad Adel and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak. The highest level of contact in 30 years also came in January when Mubarak spoke by phone with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to discuss the situation in Gaza.
 German Chancellor Angela Merkel lays a wreath on the tomb of late Egyptian president Anwar Sadat in CairoFebruary 2007. (Photo by KHALED DESOUKI/AFP/Getty Images) |
A number of analysts anticipated that full relations between the two countries would soon be restored. On Jan. 30, the state-controlled Iran Press Service quoted Iranian Foreign Affairs Minister Manouchehr Mottaki as saying that Tehran and Cairo are on the "verge of resuming political ties."The Iranian documentary has incensed leaders in Cairo, and threatens to undermine recent diplomatic efforts. Mubarak summoned Iran’s top diplomat to demand an explanation as to the subject and timing of the documentary.
In a statement, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said, “We condemn this film in the strongest possible terms. We tell our brothers in Iran they must stop producing these works, which reflect a lack of responsibility.”
Egypt’s Parliament also issued a statement condemning the film, while Egypt’s State Information Service said the nation’s leading Sunni institution, the Al-Azhar, called the film a “heinous violation of Islamic rules and values.”
In addition, Sadat’s daughter Roqeya told local media that she is considering legal action against the filmmakers, citing slander.
The spat extended into the sports world; with the Egyptian Football Association cancelling a match with the Iranian team.
Tehran has attempted to distance itself from the film, claiming it does not represent the official stance of the Islamic Republic. The filmmakers, who are from the Committee for Commemoration of Martyrs of the Global Islamic Movement, have produced other films celebrating Hezbollah and Palestinian martyrs. According to the newspaper Al-Ahram Weekly, Iranian officials claim they are not affiliated with the movement or its work, saying it is an independent organization and that the film did not air on official state television.
Egyptian police have raided the Cairo bureau of Iranian satellite news channel Al-Alam and confiscated equipment, claiming it was operating without a license. Al-Alam officials alleged the raid was in retaliation for the documentary and denied claims that it was involved in the production of the documentary.
Some analysts suggest that Egypt has deeper anxieties about engaging with Iran that go beyond a film.
Dr. Kareem Kamel, a professor of political science at the American University in Cairo, says that the Egyptian leadership has not yet come to terms with the “revolutionary Islamic character of the regime in Tehran and its quest to restructure the region according to terms that are very different from the pro-Western ‘accommodationalist’ view of the Egyptian leadership.”
Reader Comments
President Sadat belongs to the generation of the Egyptian revolution, which freed Egypt from the slavery of imperialism. Sadat successfully foresaw the future and expected the fall of the Soviet Union, and the control of the USA over the world. As the Arab case was not crowned by full settlement, including the Palestinian case, he had to mend relations with the future power, which is the USA. The crazy people who assassinated him did wrong to Egypt at the political level, and gave the opportunity for abandoned powers in the region to have their say and opinion in the Egyptian politics. They later recognized and confessed the mistakes they made. They stated that the bloomiest political era was under the rule of Sadat, may Allah have Mercy on him!
I ask Allah the Almighty to protect Egypt and all Arab and Islamic countries, and to receive Muhammad Anwar Al Sadat into His Paradise. I hold the brothers who attack their Shia Muslim brothers accountable. Let me ask them, do you not know that the Shias are followers of the household of the Prophet, peace be upon him? Your brother in faith, Abdul Salam Al Awsi from Iraq.
Dialogue is with the one who wants dialogue
May God have mercy on the martyr, Mohammed Anwar Sadat.
God is Sufficient for us and the best Manager of our affairs.
Thank you. If we could go back in time, Sadat would have hesitated to normalise relations with the traitorous Iranians. May God take all of them away from us, amen.
May God unite the Muslim people, both Sunnis and Shiites, and protect them from the evil of their Zionist enemies. Rise up to the occasion; otherwise, the fire of Jewish treacherousness will burn everyone. We respect all of our people in every Muslim country.
You know nothing about Sadat. He was not just an Egyptian leader, but occupied a higher and greater position than all the others. He is the only man who connected to the hearts of the Egyptian people. Following his example, we all repeated, God is Great, God is Great, free from any distinction between religions or ideologies. We thus received a great victory from God. Whatever Iran has done, whether it was the Iranian government or just Hezbollah, this particular policy must receive an answer. We must all know that Iran is more dangerous than America and Israel combined. Remember the words of the most honourable person ever created, our Prophet Mohammed, when he said, “The permissible is clear, and the prohibited is clear. Thus, avoid the unclear things.” In a modern sense, the actions of Israel and America are clear disbelief, and we will face it, God willing. With regards to those who speak our language and believe in our religion, however, while their heart seek to destroy us, this is what the Prophet meant when he referred to unclear things. They are more devastating and more dangerous than anything else. May God have mercy on our great martyr, Mohammed Anwar Al-Sadat. I recite the Fatihah for him.
The subject has taken on a religious meaning. This is not just about Islam. Killing is prohibited by God Almighty. Whoever regards the killer of another Muslim as a hero is not one of us.
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