Fadel Shaker Joins Salafist Demo: 'May God Take Revenge on Bashar'
Fadel Shaker, a Lebanese pop star turned outspoken supporter of Salafism, an ultra-conservative branch of Sunni Islam, on Sunday stressed the “need” for artists to support the beleaguered Syrian people, urging them to “reject the massacres” taking place in Syria.
Speaking at an anti-Syrian regime sit-in organized in Beirut’s Martyrs Square by Salafist Sheikh Ahmed al-Assir, imam of the Sidon’s Bilal bin Rabah Mosque, Shaker said: “Haven’t they seen the massacres in Homs, Daraa, Deir al-Zour and other regions?”
Asked by reporters whether it was normal for him as an artist to take part in a Salafist-organized rally, Shaker said : “My art is nothing compared to what I’m doing today by taking part in the demonstration.”
He also slammed pro-Assad Lebanese singers and artists for supporting the regime in Damascus.
Shaker then mounted the podium at Martyrs Square and delivered an anthem praising the Syrian people’s uprising.
Speaking in Sidon where Salafist activists were gathering in order to head to Beirut, Shaker said he took part in the rally “in support for our people in Homs, Hama, Deir al-Zour, Aleppo and Idlib.”
“May God grant them victory and take revenge on (Syrian President) Bashar al-Assad and his cronies,” Shaker added.
He also launched a tirade of insults against Fayez Shukur, head of the Lebanon branch of the ruling Baath party in Syria who led a nearby rival rally in downtown Beirut, describing him as a “midget.”
The United Nations says more than 7,500 people have been killed since March last year in a crackdown by Syrian forces on anti-regime demonstrations.
Damascus does not recognize the scale of the protest movement that erupted in mid-March, insisting it is fighting "terrorist groups" seeking to sow chaos as part of a foreign-hatched conspiracy.
Source: Naharnet
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