Nadine Al Bitar

Nadine Al Bitar is a Lebanese journalist and media professional at Qatar Television.

Journalism formed part of her family life from the beginning. Her father, Ziad Al-Bitar, was a journalist, while her mother was a biologist. Educated at a monastic school before studying media at university, she also developed gifts for poetry, reflective writing and drawing. Her family recognised that ability, and her husband later became a trusted source of advice and practical support. At the time documented by the source, she was studying for a master’s degree in media and communication sciences at the Lebanese University in Beirut.

During secondary school, disagreement between her parents left her uncertain about her direction. Her mother wanted her only daughter to follow biology, and she initially considered pharmacy; her father encouraged the journalism he loved. Media ultimately won. She graduated before turning twenty-one and trained at Voice of the People radio in Beirut alongside her studies, gaining practical experience before entering full-time work. She then moved to the United Arab Emirates, presented economic news for CNBC Arabia, and worked successively with Al-Aqaria TV, Ajman TV and Radio Al Rabia, spending five years at the latter two outlets.

In 2008, a car accident prompted a period of reflection that deepened an interest in Islam already encouraged by messages she had received by email. Reading the Prophet Muhammad’s Farewell Sermon moved her profoundly. A friend taught her how to pray, and she embraced Islam through Sheikh Dr Omar Abdel Kafi, whom she regards as her spiritual father.

A routine medical visit in 2011 revealed kidney cancer. The diagnosis was initially a severe shock, but her faith helped her understand the illness as a test rather than an end. She underwent the removal of her right kidney and resumed normal life with one kidney. Regular examinations continued to show that she was in good health, and the experience made her more positive, less troubled by superficial problems and increasingly willing to encourage other cancer patients to focus on life and recovery.

Another decisive change came in 2012, when she moved to Qatar and joined the Support and Development Committee at Qatar Television. She began as a broadcaster of economic bulletins, then progressed to political news, economic reports and external coverage. Her assignments also included the press segment on ‘Fi Al-Duha’ and episodes of ‘Ramadan and the People’.

Her husband supported her professional, humanitarian and voluntary commitments and shared advice on family life and raising their children. From him, she says, she learned patience and perseverance, qualities that helped her meet the pressures of a demanding public career.

After settling in Qatar, she entered voluntary work through the Qatar Cancer Society. When the organisation learned that she had survived kidney cancer, it appointed her an honorary ambassador. She later became a social-media ambassador for Qatar Charity and contributed to the Gulf Society for People with Special Needs and Qatar Red Crescent, dividing her time between journalism, family and social action.

Humanitarian journeys reshaped her priorities. Visits to Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh made her reconsider waste and the value of everyday blessings after seeing families wait for hours in the sun for a small plate of rice and meat. Further visits to Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon and Türkiye strengthened her commitment to delivering assistance and listening to people living through displacement and deprivation.

She also completed a two-month course at the Social and Cultural Centre for the Deaf, learning sign language and gaining a closer understanding of the community’s experience and needs.