Al3asaker, a documentary by Al-Jazeera focusing on the lives of Egyptian conscripts beginning their compulsory military service began to stir controversy even before it was screened on Sunday. “Al-Jazeera's documentary is part of Qatar's psychological war against Egypt, an attempt to incite army conscripts against their commanders,” says professor of political science Tarek Fahmi. The documentary claims to tell the story of young Egyptian men as they prepare for military service, and addresses how they are treated during their time in the army. What we need to remember, says Fahmi, is that it is only a film and there are plenty of other movies since the 1970s that have portrayed the army in a more negative light. Mohamed Hegazi, former assistant to the foreign minister, believes the documentary provides a perfect example of how the media has become a vehicle for exercising political pressure, disseminating false information and attempting to erode national unity. “We need no more evidence that this satellite channel, which for several years has daily devoted hours of its schedule attacking Egypt, is part of a malicious campaign to fragment and divide the Middle East along sectarian and ethnic lines and undermine the nation-state,” Hegazi told Al-Ahram Weekly. Rakha Hassan, former assistant to the foreign minister, believes it is no coincidence the documentary was broadcast against a backdrop of escalating tensions between Egypt and Qatar. “Most recently tension has been exacerbated because of Egypt's clear stand on the Syrian issue. Egypt supports a political solution that protects the integrity of Syrian territory while Qatar supports the opposition, especially Al-Nusra Front, a group that has been designated a terrorist organisation,” he says. Fahmi agrees with Hassan that the decision to broadcast the documentary now is linked to the dwindling possibility of meaningful reconciliation between Egypt and the Gulf states, with the exception of the UAE and Kuwait. The airing of the documentary prompted many in the Egyptian media to launch attacks against Al-Jazeera and Qatar. In an article in Al-Watan newspaper Emadeddin Adeeb wrote that the documentary was an example of “Qatar's absurd hostility to Egypt which will cause harm to Doha on the long run.” Other media and public figures regarded the documentary as offensive and demanded the government take immediate and strong retaliatory action. MPs called for the Qatari ambassador to Egypt to be expelled, a demand widely echoed on Twitter. A handful of commentators adopted a more measured tone, criticising the virulence of the media attack and asking why the authorities were so concerned about a one-sided documentary broadcast on a satellite channel. Hassan stresses that life for conscripts is no bed of roses and their training is often harsh, especially at time of heightened conflict. He also points out that “the documentary is biased and lacks the balance needed by any serious media programme”. “It was clearly made to be the vehicle for a political message. Its goal is not to document or simply state the facts.” Fahmi sees the film as part of a concerted campaign, and it is the Egyptian army that Al-Jazeera has in its crosshairs. “On the same day the film was screened,” he notes, “there was yet another article on the Egyptian army on Al-Jazeera's website.” Tensions with Qatar first surfaced under Hosni Mubarak as Doha attempted to extend its diplomatic influence in the Middle East, including in the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. They grew when Doha adopted a policy of close cooperation with Islamist movement Hamas in the Palestinian territories and Hizbullah in Lebanon. There was a noticeable improvement in bilateral ties under Mohamed Morsi's rule whan Doha provided generous economic and financial support to Morsi's Brotherhood dominated government. Following the ouster of Morsi in the wake of 30 June demonstrations relations soured again. Doha rejected Morsi's removal as president, claiming the 30 June Revolution was in fact a military coup, and began attacking Egypt through its television channel Al-Jazeera. It embarked on a campaign which continues till today of criticising the Egyptian regime and denouncing court rulings passed against members of the Muslim Brotherhood. Qatar opened its doors to provide a safe haven for Brotherhood leaders and a media platform, and withdrew the economic support it had provided to Egypt during the one-year rule of the Brotherhood. Egyptian-Qatari relations continued to deteriorate. In February 2014 Cairo withdrew its ambassador to Qatar. Attempts to forge an Egyptian-Qatari rapprochement came to the fore in November 2014 when late king Abdullah of Saudi Arabia called on Cairo to follow Riyadh and end its dispute with Qatar. Egypt responded to king Abdullah's calls by issuing a statement welcoming any thaw in its relations with Qatar. The statement was quickly followed by a meeting between President Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi and Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdel-Rahman Al-Thani, attended by king Abdullah's secretary and hailed by Riyadh as the opening of “a new page” between the two Arab states. This preliminary meeting was supposed to be followed by a summit between Al-Sisi and Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani in Riyadh. The attendance of the Qatari emir at the Arab Summit in March last year was seen by some observers as evidence that tensions between Cairo and Doha were easing. Saudi Arabia tried to arrange a tripartite meeting with Egypt and Qatar on the sidelines of the summit but efforts to promote reconciliation between the two countries failed to bear fruit and the meeting was never held. As long as Doha continues to resent Egypt's military for overthrowing Morsi and extends its support to opposition and terrorist groups, relations between the two states will remain tense, says Fahmi. He also warns that calls to sever relations which have been amplified on social media following the screening of the documentary do more harm than good. “Al-Jazeera may decide to produce a series of documentaries about Egypt. They could focus on the judiciary or any other sector. The only way to combat this is to respond in a professional way and prepare programmes and articles that show the truth about Egypt,” Fahmi says. Hassan believes the documentary has incrementally heighted the tensions that already exist between Cairo and Doha “but given the economic relations between the two, and the fact that Qatar is home to between 45,000 and 50,000 Egyptian expatriates, maintaining some form of relations is essential”. Military service is compulsory in Egypt for men aged between 18 and 35. Men who have no brothers and those deemed mentally or physically unfit are exempted. Conscripts serve between one to three years according to their educational qualifications.
