Iran records TV programme in Italian to shed light on Islam

(AGI) Tehran, July 28 - For the first time in Iran, a television programme has been recorded in the Italian language. It is meant to shed light on Islam and explain that terrorist acts are carried out by twisted fanatics. "Islam per tutti: 40 lezioni sull'Islam" (Islam for everyone: 40 lessons on Islam) was produced by the Jamiatal Murtaza centre, which is tasked with presenting Shia Islam to the world. The centre collaborates with the renowned International Centre of Islamic Studies in Qum. The programme was recorded at the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) studios in Qum and will arrive in Italy on DVD in the upcoming months. It aims to present Islam in a concise manner and provide clear and exhaustive answers to the key questions that Italians might have. The initiative was launched after Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, gave orders for authentic Islam to be explained to young Westerners. He wrote two open letters condemning terrorism and expressing his hope for deeper knowledge of the religion abroad. "The Islamic jihad is the struggle against tyrants, but its model is that of Moses against the Pharaoh, as narrated in the Quran. It absolutely does not authorise actions against civilians and innocents and, for the most part, it's defensive. The episodes of violence that are happening in the world in the name of Islam are the work of twisted extremists that the Islamic world must condemn, isolate, and fight with weapons if necessary," affirmed the programme's Shia theologian, Mustafa Milani. Mr Milani gave an interview with AGI's Iranian correspondent in Tehran, Davood Abbasi, who transmitted questions posed by Westerners on Islam. "The programme consists of forty 20-minute episodes and will be available in Italy in the next few months via Iran's cultural representations," explained the director of the Jamiatal Murtaza, the Hujjat al-Islam (authority on Islam) Zadhush. The programme could also mark the beginning of Iranian television productions in Italian, and perhaps even a channel in Italian. The IRIB has run a radio show in Italian for the last 18 years - previously under the name of Radio Italia IRIB and currently as Pars Today Italian. It has satellite channels in English, Arabic, French, Spanish, and Bosnian, and has been contemplating a television programme in Italian for some time. (AGI). .