Egypt pop star Mohamed Ramadan sparks outrage for concert in regime-controlled Damascus
Egypt pop star Mohamed Ramadan sparks outrage for concert in regime-controlled Damascus
Popular Egyptian singer Mohamed Ramadan has come under attack on social media after announcing concert dates in Assad regime-controlled Damascus.
2 min read
Ramadan will join a list of several singers who have performed in Damascus in recent months [Getty]
Controversial Egyptian singer Mohamed Ramadan has announced that he will perform in the Syrian capital Damascus next month.
Ramadan is the latest Arab mainstream pop figure to announce a concert in Assad regime-held areas of Syria since the brutal conflict began there over 11 years ago.
After his performance in Syria on October 6th, the Egyptian star will go back to Alexandria to perform to a home crowd.
“Today, I signed contracts for three concerts in three different countries. Every day I will announce the name of the country and the date of the ceremony… The first concert in sisterly Syria is Thursday, one day before the Alexandria concert.” said Ramadan in his tweet.
اليوم وقعت عقود ثلاث حفلات في ثلاث دول مُختلفة
— Mohamed Ramadan (@Mohamed_Ramadan) September 23, 2022
كل يوم هعلنلكم عن اسم الدولة وتاريخ الحفل .. أول حفلة بإذن الله في سوريا الشقيقة الخميس الموافق السادس من أكتوبر قبل حفلة اسكندرية بيوم واحد
🇸🇾🔥🔥🔥🙌🏽 #محمد_رمضان pic.twitter.com/nDT3xexmYu
Pop stars from across the Arab world have been increasingly open to performing in regime-controlled Damascus in recent months, with several visiting the city over the summer.
The conflict in Syria began with the brutal suppression of peaceful anti-government protests in 2011, and over 500,000 people have been killed with millions more displaced.
Most of the deaths and displacement have been at the hands of the Assad regime, which is accused of numerous atrocities.
Egyptian singer Hani Shaker performed in Syria this month for the first time in 15 years, while Lebanese star Najwa Karam also held a concert in the citadel of Damascus last summer.
“It seems that Bashar's regime is hell-bent on trying to wash its image with so-called artists affiliated with Egypt,” tweeted Egyptian journalist Saleh Bedewi.
Bedewi accused Shaker of performing "despite the suffering of millions of displaced persons" and fiercely attacked Mohamed Ramadan, calling him a "symbol of low art and moral decadence".
Ramadan has previously caused outrage and controversy in the Arab World, after posing for pictures and videos with an Israeli fan, brushing his teeth with gold toothpaste in a Twitter video, and appearing on stage in Jordan in a Lamborghini despite spiralling poverty in the country.
More In News
