MP whips out gun, hurls shoe as live TV show turns ugly

Amman: A live television talk show in Jordan produced a torrent of insults, a shoe flying across the studio and a pistol being whipped out, as the host desperately tried to keep two rival politicians apart.

The show on private satellite channel Jo Sat, aired on Friday, started to spin out of control after MP Mohammad Shawabka accused former deputy Mansur Murad of working as a spy for the Syrian regime.

The charge led to a sharp exchange of insults and accusations.

"You are a spy in the pay of the Syrian regime," insisted Shawabka, only to be accused by Murad of being "spy in the pay of (Israel's secret service) Mossad and a thief."

The MP hurled his shoe as his accuser and threatened him with a pistol as both men jumped out of their seats, with the moderator scrambling between the men close up in front of the camera to keep tempers from flaring into all-out violence.

Jordan, where activists have been staging pro-reform and anti-corruption demonstrations, has also been the scene of several anti-Damascus protests since the outbreak of the March 2011 revolt in neighbouring Syria.