A young man from Syria was recently declared the winner of popular reality-mucic television series Arab Idol, reported the Jerusalem Post.
The winner, Hazim Sharif hails from the battle-torn Syrian city of Aleppo and despite being in the spotlight, did not attract any controversy with his statements but instead prayed that the calamities in his country would end soon.
The victory of the young Syrian brought tremendous joy and happiness to his hometown as several people posted videos on social media websites, where they were shown celebrating the victory in Aleppo, which is currently in the centre of the battle between pro-government forces and insurgent groups within the country.
The victory was also celebrated in the capital city of Damascus, where people at restaurants were shown waving the Syrian national flags. Previous Syrian winners of the Arab Idol have been known to wave their country’s flags to commemorate their victory but unlike his predecessors, Sharif dedicated his victory to his compatriots and family members.
For instance, Karmen Suleiman of Egypt had more famously appeared with the country’s flag a year after the 2011 Egyptian revolution, reported the BBC News.
The singer posted a message on Facebook praying to God to “bring all harm to light” and put an end to all the “calamities”. The message was a reference to the civil war that has ensued in the region for a while now and has claimed the lives of almost 200,000 people.
Sharif had already cast a spell over the audience with his velvet voice and stable performances. He had remained an audience favourite throughout the four-month long competition and eventually defeated his competition from Palestine and Saudi Arabia.
“I just want to address the Syrian people and all of Syria. It would be my honour, and wish, to have my first performance in Syria,” he told reporters.
The judges of the show also commended Sharif on his victory stating that, “with your winning, you made bleeding Syria cheer,” remarked United Arab Emirates singer Ahlam, who also serves as one of the judges on the show.
“God willing, your winning will be a remedy to the injuries of Syrians,” hoped Lebanese singer Nancy Ajram.
Shareef has pocketed 250,000 Saudi riyals ($66,000) in cash and a contract with Platinum Records for three singles and a video clip. Apart from that, he has also won a trip to the Seychelles courtesy of Emirates airline rounds off the prize.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 16th, 2014.
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