BEIRUT: Fans of iconic Lebanese singer Fairouz got a special treat just hours before the arrival of 2016. On the occasion of the New Year, Fairouz appeared in an online video posted by her daughter Reema Rahbany on her Facebook page.

Fairouz, who recently turned 80, rarely gives such appearances, which renders this video an event extraordinaire.

The one-minute-long video opens with Fairouz standing in front of a set of candles and family photo frames adorning the background.

In the next shot, Fairouz is facing the camera, as she holds a candle and slowly beams with a miniature smile.

The shot unfolds as her voice unravels, singing the following lyrics in Arabic, “The snow sheaths the land/January revisits/A year has ended/A new one has dawned/We have yet to know how it will be like.”

Fans were understandably delighted. One commented: ‘My God, no words can describe.’

This comes weeks after a Lebanese magazine published an article criticizing the singer over her political opinions, arguing that she supports Syrian President Bashar Assad’s regime and that she loves money.

The article triggered a commotion across social media platforms, inspiring Fairouz’s fans to start online campaigns condemning the article and expressing solidarity with the singer and her rich repertoire.