2013 Arab Idol's Song Banned in Some Countries
The Claim
Mohammed Assaf’s popular song "Raise the Koufia,” considered an iconic symbol of Palestine, was deleted off MBC’s YouTube channel.
News posted on
Emerging story
Social media flared up following Israel’s entry ban on Mohammed Assaf. Social media users across the MENA region claimed that Assaf's popular song "Raise the Koufia,” was deleted off MBC’s YouTube channel.
Arab activists and singers showed solidarity with the Palestinian artist, Muhammad Assaf after Israel withdrew his entry permits.
Misbar’s Analysis
Misbar found a lot of conflicting accounts about the fact that the clip was removed from the MBC account on YouTube. While some people in Palestine and a number of other countries complained on Twitter about their inability to view the clip, users in Egypt confirmed that the video is available in their country. The warning below indicates that the video is blocked in some countries for copyright reasons.
الأغنية التي تخيف إسرائيل... لم تعد متوفرة على يوتيوب في عددٍ من الدول#علّي_الكوفية#كلنا_محمد_عساف#محمد_عساف pic.twitter.com/StV01tehdb
— Raseef22 (@Raseef22) October 17, 2020
An Israeli member of parliament announced that Israel is working to prevent a famous Palestinian singer from entering the occupied Palestinian territories. Avi Dichter, who was formerly Israel’s minister of internal security, said that a special permit allowing Mohammed Assaf to enter the occupied West Bank would be withdrawn. According to The New Arab, measures against Assaf were being taken because of videos he had made calling for resistance against Israel.
Assaf was the winner of the 2013 Arab Idol singing contest, becoming hugely popular largely due to his patriotic pro-Palestine songs.
Neither Arab Idol nor MBC had any comment on the matter at this writing.
