The popular Palestinian anthem, “Ana Dammi Falastini’ (My Blood is Palestinian), by Palestinian singer and Arab Idol winner Mohammed Assaf, has been removed from several platforms, including Spotify, Apple Music and Deezer, causing an uproar from fans.
The singer told Al-Araby al-Jadeed, that he was shocked by the decision to remove his song and that he received an email about it, stating that it was due to “inciting against Israel”.
Assaf who has amassed a large fanbase from around the world, said: “I received an official email about it, on the pretext that the song incites the Zionist enemy, which makes me more honoured that my songs express the Palestinian people’s resistance to the occupation.”
Assaf took to Instagram and said: “That’s fine. It’s preserved in the hearts of all of those who are free and noble.”
The 33-year-old singer who is known for his patriotic songs, is from the besieged Gaza Strip.
After his 2013 win in the Arab Idol singing contest, Assaf was then named a goodwill ambassador for peace by the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, while the Palestinian government also named him an ambassador of arts and culture, according to Middle East Eye.
Twitter user @imanabid posted: “Spotify removing ‘Dammi Falastini’ is insane. The absolute ridiculousness it takes to silence everything about us. Our words, our food, our music. Reinstate his song now.”
User @jennineak said the move was “outrageous” and that many streaming platforms had removed the song.
Meanwhile, Spotify clarified on Monday that the removal of Mohammed Assaf’s content from its platform was not a decision made by the company itself, but rather by the content’s distributor.
