LONDON (EJP) - The first radio station in the UK ever to be run jointly by Jews and Muslims made history last Thursday night when it started broadcasting.

Radio Salaam Shalom, a project by students of two universities in England’s South West, has attracted media interest from around the world by bringing the two faiths together.

The station, which is broadcast over the Internet, features both Jewish and Muslim presenters and promises a mixture of music, talk and feature-led programmes.

But while Radio Salaam Shalom hopes to focus on the faiths’ often overlooked similarities and shared culture, bosses have also vowed not to “duck” the potentially divisive issues between them, such as the Israeli-Palestinian dispute, during live discussions.

A spokesman for the station said it will focus on “the many aspects of Jewish and Muslim life and allow two cultures which have been linked for thousands of years to talk together and share their experiences.”

'Moderate majority'

The station is the voice of the “moderate majority” where people from both communities will have the chance to celebrate, debate and share the events, the spokesman added.

Farooq Siddique, a member of the Bristol Muslim Cultural Society and presenter on the station, said he hoped the project would help improve community relations.

“Basically when you think of two communities who don’t get on, the first one you think of is Jews and Muslims.

“The idea behind the station, at a time when chasms are opening up between communities here in the UK and around the world, is to act as a bridge and bring communities together to discuss their problems.

“There’s so much we have in common. The Israel-Palestine issue has come to define Muslim and Jewish relations, but prior to that the relationship was the exact opposite.”

The idea came from Jewish and Muslim students at two universities - Bristol University and the University of the West of England - as a means of forging closer links with each other.

Grant

It was set up after receiving a 50,000 pounds (around 75,600 euros) grant from the government’s Faith Communities Capacity Building Fund, designed to encourage inter-faith dialogue, and has taken nine months to set up.

The group is made up of around 35 volunteers and will be broadcast in English. The chair of the organisation, Peter Brill, who is Jewish, said the station would give the “moderate majority” a voice.

“We’re not going to shy away from the controversial issues, but they will be discussed in an environment of understanding and respect rather than a shouting match,” he said.

He said the station have had a “staggering” amount of media interest, including from Arab TV station Al-Jazeera’s new English language service.

Station manager Kyle Hannan said: "If the presenters are interested in it, then it will be talked about. The programmes are made from two specific religious groups but it is not a religious station - it’s just a station which is made up of people from different cultural groups. The stuff they come up together will give the station its individuality."

One show will include a Muslim mother broadcasting with her two young sons. Shazia Riaz will present a programme with her children Hanza 12, and 11-year-old Ses.

"I want to raise issues and involve people from across the world and find out their experiences to see if they are the same as ours in Bristol," she said.

With daily broadcast from 3-9 pm, the radio station is available on www.salaamshalom.org.uk.