This information was provided by the Nativity Television to the Bethlehem Association
Al-Mahed “Nativity” TV. Station
| Location and Address:
Al-Mahed “Nativity” TV. Station is located in the City of Bethlehem where Jesus Christ was born, on a high cliff 350 meters far from the Church of Nativity. Address: P.O. Box 642 Bethlehem, Palestine. Tel. : 972-2-274 7012 : 972-2-274 1702 Fax : 972-2-274 1701 E-mail : almahed-tv@hally.net Web. site : under construction |
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Ownership:
The Station is owned and run by Samir Qumsieh who is also the Elected President of Radio & Tv. Private Stations General Union in Palestine which consists of 31 Tv. Stations & 14 Radio Stations, and the Counselor for Interreligious Affairs for H.B Msgr. Michel Sabbah the Latin Patriarch in Jerusalem and the Holy Land.
Employees:
33 employees dedicated and qualified in the press, programs and technical fields.
Channels:
We broadcast at the following:- VHF 12.3 and UHF 21.8
Programs:
Al-Mahed Tv. Station is famous of it’s assorted programs which cover various activities and fields i.e. Children, Environmental, Economical, Political, Musical, Social, Educational, Health, and Religious (Christian and Muslim) Programs, plus a Daily News Bulletin, Current Affairs Debates, and all Christian Celebrations and Festivals.
It is worthy to mention that our station is the only station in Palestine and the Arab World, which broadcasts Christian masses, services, and a weekly Christian program called “The Gospel and Life”.
Viewers and Coverage:
As per the latest polls we have about 1,000,000 spectators.
We cover the following Governorates in Palestine: Bethlehem, Jerusalem, Ramallah, Hebron and Jericho, plus many cities in Jordan and many parts of Israel.
Mission Statement and Targets
We at Al-Mahed TV Station are committed to help in building a Palestinian civil society, based on the principles of freedom, democracy, pluralism, anti-discrimination and equality of all in front of the law.
We also work on building trust and respect among the different religions and communities in the Holy Land.
“Please note that there are two people: Palestinians and Israelis, with three religions in this area, Judaism, Islam, and Christianity, which consists of various communities.
About us:
Private media experiment is a rare commodity in the Arab World, and Palestine is pioneering in that.
This helps in building a democratic society essential to peace and stability in the region.
We started broadcasting at Al-Mahed Tv. on 23rd September 1996, covering all events and activities and providing objective views on current issues, earning ourselves a reputation that has put us ahead of the competition with a wide margin in all the polls conducted by governmental and private organizations.
Our archive includes thousands of cassettes full of very valuable materials and shots, from the visit of the pope John Paul II to the Holy Land, to all the events of Al-Intifada (up-rising) where there are many unique and extraordinary shots, in addition to different documentary films for all the holy sites in the Holy Land.
The Intifada has had its toll on all walks of life in Palestine, and we, like all other institutions are facing great economic hardships that might ultimately force us to stop our services.
We accept unconditional support only, and are willing to discuss any exchange of materials from our archive or through our production capabilities against a financial support.
A Unique Lifetime Experience
On Tuesday 2nd April, 2002 the Israeli tanks and armoured vehicles, backed up by helicopters penetrated the Palestinian National Authority’s territories in an incursion that lasted 40 days.
The only TV. Station in Bethlehem Governorate which decided to remain working was AL-Mahed “Nativity” TV. despite the expected dangers, and this decision taken by Al-Mahed Management after consultations with the staff where four of them agreed to stay working despite the real threat to their lives, proved to be a very wise decision as it was a unique chance to offer humanitarian and social services to all the people of Bethlehem Governorate specifically, and to all the citizens where our broadcast reach i.e. Jerusalem, Ramallah, Hebron and Jericho Governorates plus many cities in Jordan.
As per the awards and appreciation letters we received from various official and private organizations, we were the eyes through which people looked, and the lungs through which people could breath, and the only window to the outside world, with the tanks and military vehicles imposing strict curfew on all the country, shooting any moving body.
Some of these organizations are:
• The Latin Patriarchate – Jerusalem.
• Bethlehem Municipality.
• Beit-Sahour Municipality.
• Beit-Jala Municipality.
• Al-Ubiedyeh Municipality.
• The Legislative Council.
• Bethlehem University.
• Palestinian Red Crescent Society.
• Water Supply and Sewerage Authority.
• Some Martyrs’ Families.
• Some Patients’ Families.
• The Islamic Charitable Society.
• Jerusalem District Electricity Co.
• Ministry of Information.
• Ministry of Wakf & Religious Affairs.
• Ministry of Education.
• The Civil Defense Directorate.
• The Palestinian Prisoner Society.
• Palestine Technical College-Arroub.
Plus too many other establishments and thousands of individuals who expressed their gratitude on Air through an open line after the Israeli withdrawal.
Part of the services rendered during the 40-days incursion where people and organizations contact us and we broadcast on our screen the requested appeal, and immediately the concerned party responds:
Securing milk to babies and food supplies to sieged people.
Guiding doctors to patients nearby.
Securing diabetic injections to patients.
Helping delivering pregnant ladies by neighbouring matrons or doctors.
Securing water to various areas, and broadcasting locations of broken waterlines damaged by the tanks.
Guiding Electricity Co. to coordinate for repair of current failure or damage of transformers supplying electricity to areas in the Governorate.
Helping the Telephones’ Co. to repair cut or out of order lines due to the importance of telephones at that time.
Helping people recover lost documents, items and belongings.
Keeping the citizens informed of the Israeli army activities “search of houses, detentions, shootings etc… .
Warning the people of dangers in specific areas.
Broadcasting hours of lift of curfew, as conveyed to us by the Liaison office, and we were the only means reliable and adopted by the people.
Close follow up of the Church of Nativity Siege and making on-Air contact with the sieged people inside.
Our initiative to broadcast appeals through our screen enabled the Christians attend the Easter masses during the holy week, as well as for Muslims on some Fridays.
All above mentioned continued during the second incursion which started on Monday, May 27th. until Friday Aug. 16th, 2002.
It is worthy to mention that our four people working in the station often run out of food. One of them lost a brother, shot dead by Israeli soldiers, his body remained in the streets for three days, but he continued his job, and even could not attend the burial of his brother.
Note: Copies of the awards and appreciation letters can be furnished upon request.