When Syrian contestant Abdel Karim Hamdan made a powerful show in the ongoing Arab Idol contest, the audience in the Arab world thought they have already seen the winner but they were wrong as the contest has thrown up another rare young talent from Palestine. So the contest is now being dubbed as a contest between the Palestinian rocket and Syrian missile.
The golden voice of a young man from a Gaza refugee camp (Khan Younis) has enchanted viewers of Arab Idol, broadcast weekly to huge audiences across the Middle East, making him favorite to win the final of the singing contest. Mohamed Assaf, 23, has won massive support from viewers enthralled by his rendition of traditional love songs and anguish for the Palestine cause.
We note the pleasant reaction on the faces of the experienced judges like Raghib Alama, Nancy Ajram and others, when the youth starts singing. He has also succeeded in uniting Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank and the Diaspora. — S.H. Moulana, Riyadh
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