💡 SPOTLIGHT

Why the UAE erased Palestinian lyrics from “The Arab Dream” operetta

As the United Arab Emirates normalizes relations with Israel, an Emirati organization's recent revival of a famous pan-Arab song is strangely devoid of all common Arab issues and subjects that would anger Israel, just as Palestinians are being massacred in Gaza, writes Ahmed El-Fakharani in Arabic-language independent digital media Daraj.

The United Arab Emirates has revived "The Arab Dream" operetta. This pan-Arab song, widely described as an operetta in the Arab world, became famous in 2000 at the time of the Second Intifada and has become a symbol of solidarity with the Palestinian cause.

A new version of this operetta was performed by 11 Arab artists on Feb. 26, as part of the closing ceremony of the 4th edition of the UAE's Hope Makers program, which celebrates philanthropists in the Arab world. Hope Makers is one of some 33 philanthropic initiatives overseen by Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE vice president and ruler of Dubai.

Yet this revival transformed the operetta, emptying it of every tie to solidarity and unity with the issues of the Arab world. Its content is no different from the UAE's vision: just words of human development fit for multinational companies, not for countries or nations. Using archival images of the operetta make it appear as if the dream was still a dream, with some modifications to empty it of nationalistic sentiment.

The escalation of the Israel-Hamas war, which has claimed the lives of more than 30,000 Palestinians in Gaza, had prompted calls for a revival of and sequel to the operetta. And the song's writer, the Egyptian poet and lyricist Medhat Al-Adl, had announced rehearsals for its performance at the Cairo Opera House in October 2023. That performance was later postponed indefinitely.

Al-Adl then announced the Hope Makers performance, saying “They found that this is reviving hope in the Arab dream again. They asked, we responded and are happy to be there.” He insisted that the war had prompted the operetta's revival; it had become the most searched song on Google.

“The messages of 'Arab Dream' are one of the reasons for reviving it through a live broadcast," he said, citing "the escalation of Israel’s brutal crimes, and the shameful and inhumane international attitude that amounts to complicity".

Al-Adl's comments are similar to speeches by many Arab politicians: They say one thing and do another. Despite his goodwill, he deleted, at the request of the UAE's Hope Makers, unwanted sections of the operetta related to the Palestinian cause and the Arab reality, which 28 years after the operetta was first performed, has only worsened: Arab rulers' position toward the genocide in Palestine; the genocide of the Syrian people by President Bashar Assad; the failure of the Arab Spring uprisings; the deteriorating political and economic situations in Iraq, Yemen, etc.

One Emirati writer said that the new version of the operetta is better because it is, as he put it, free of "hatred and politics." Meaning it is free of the subjects that are needed. [...]

— Read the full article by Ahmed El-Fakharani for Daraj, translated into English by Worldcrunch.

🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW

• Blinken returns to Middle East in Gaza diplomacy push: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken returned to the Middle East on Wednesday, his sixth visit to the region since the start of the Israel-Hamas war. Blinken plans to engage in ceasefire talks in Qatar, as well as Gaza aid discussions in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia and Cairo, Egypt, with a goal of “achieving lasting peace and security in the region,” according to the U.S. State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller. Read more about Blinken’s diplomacy push here.

• Irish Prime Minister to step down: Ireland’s prime minister, Leo Varadkar, will step down from his position and as the Fine Gael party leader, the Irish broadcaster RTE first reported. The Taoiseach (Irish prime minister) will vacate his position before Ireland’s next general election in 2025, citing “personal and political reasons.” An early election will take place in April to elect a new prime minister, the leader announced in a press conference Wednesday afternoon. Varadkar had made diplomatic headlines recently, with vocal support for Palestine and calls for more U.S. involvement in bringing peace to the Middle East in a St. Patrick’s Day speech.

• Appeals court freezes strict Texas immigration law: A U.S. federal appeals court issued an order blocking Texas’ strict, new immigration law and effectively reversing a decision approved by the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday. The controversial law would have allowed Texas to arrest migrants suspected of illegal entry, giving local authorities unprecedented power, which the Biden administration called “unconstitutional.” Read more about the U.S. migration issue on Worldcrunch.

• France fines Google €250 million: The Autorité de la concurrence, France’s competition watchdog, has fined Google €250 million (nearly $272 million) for EU copyright breaches. The dispute was brought by French news organizations, including Agence France Presse, who claim that Google breached an agreement to pay media companies for reproducing their content. Google pledged to not to dispute these facts in the settlement proceedings, and has proposed “remedy measures,” including more transparent compensation. 

• Papua New Guinea floods, landslides leave 23 dead: Large landslides triggered by torrential rains Monday have killed at least 23 in Papua New Guinea. The death toll is a result of three separate mud landslides in Chimbu Province according to the country’s National Disaster Center. The country is still facing heavy rains and flooded rivers in the highlands and along the coast of the Gulf province. Read more about climate change’s effect on natural disasters on Worldcrunch.  

• Russian, Belarusian athletes limited at Paris Olympics: The International Olympic Committee has decided that athletes from Russia and Belarus will not be allowed to participate in the Paris Olympics opening ceremony. The IOC Executive Board had already barred Russia and Belarus from competing in team sports due to the war in Ukraine or competing under the flags of the two nations. The committee will allow 58 qualifying “neutral athletes” from these countries to compete individually, on the condition that they have not publicly supported Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Still, with Tuesday’s IOC decision, those athletes must now also sit out the opening ceremonies. Follow Worldcrunch’s coverage of the Russia-Ukraine war.

• Finland is the world's happiest country: Finland has held on to the top spot in the World Happiness Report for a seventh successive year. The annual UN-sponsored report, released Wednesday, listed Finland as the overall happiest country, based on data from a Gallup World Poll and well-being scientists. The United States and Germany dropped out of the top 20, and Costa Rica and Kuwait entered at 12 and 13 respectively. 

🗞️ FRONT PAGE​​

Amsterdam-based daily NRC uses its front page to ask “Who will end the chaos in Haiti?” Haiti has seen three weeks of violence and chaos caused by politically connected gangs and a lack of democracy following the assassination of its president three years ago and the departure of elected officials a year ago, leaving no democratically elected officials in government. Special forces police officer turned gang leader Jimmy “Barbecue” Chérizier has said that the criminal groups’ aim was to overthrow unpopular leader Ariel Henry, who is the country’s current leader and acting president. Henry has announced his intention to resign, however it is unclear whether this will mean gang violence will come to an end. 

📰 STORY OF THE DAY

Indian haute couture, an aesthetic give-and-take with Europe's fashion establishment

Their creations have been worn by international celebrities, such as Beyoncé and Zendaya. Their techniques have been used by major fashion houses, including Dior, Chanel and Balenciaga. With Indian designers Gaurav Gupta and Rahul Mishra making their mark on red carpets and runways around the world, Les Echos reports on the country's rising luxury fashion industry.

👗 Last year, many American stars wore Gupta on the red carpet. The designer also created three outfits for Beyonce’s colossal “Renaissance” tour, during which Queen B wore a neon green dress imitating a traditional Indian sari. These are just some of the signs that Indian fashion designers are all the rage, and are seriously starting to win over customers outside the subcontinent. “For our Western customers, this kind of style is totally new,” Gupta told Les Echos Week-End in his studio in Noida, a large industrial city southeast of New Delhi.

🧵 Some of the dresses designed by Gupta require 3,000 hours of work. That’s 125 days for one worker, including nights. “In India, we have inherited a huge culture of craftsmanship. This gives us an advantage over other designers,” Gupta says. This savoir-faire is reserved for a very privileged clientele: his haute couture dresses sell for a minimum of 9,000 euros ($9,800) each.

🇮🇳 “Our identity is Indian and global: there are always little hints hidden in our outfits that only Indian customers will be able to understand and appreciate. But these garments are also compatible with Western customers' expectations,” Gupta says, pointing to a mother-of-pearl-colored sari dress on a mannequin in his office: “I could see Kendall Jenner in this. But an Indian woman could totally wear it, too.”

➡️ Read more on Worldcrunch.com

📹 THIS HAPPENED VIDEO — TODAY IN HISTORY, IN ONE ICONIC PHOTO

➡️ Watch the video: THIS HAPPENED

#️⃣ BY THE NUMBERS

$640 million

U.S. author and philanthropist MacKenzie Scott announced she is giving away $640 million to 361 non profits. Scott has a net worth of over $40.6 billion thanks to her involvement in Amazon, which was founded by her former husband Jeff Bezos. Her organization Yield Giving previously announced an open call for applicants in partnership with Lever for Change, with more than 6,000 non profit organizations applying for the funding. The open call originally intended to give 250 awards of $1 million each so Scott is giving more than double the amount planned.

📣 VERBATIM

“I will not apologize because I did nothing wrong.”

— Senegal’s President Macky Sall said in an interview with the BBC that he will not apologize for delaying elections due to be held last month, which sparked protests and led to political uncertainty. Sall promised an era of good governance and a reduction in presidential terms with his 2012 victory, but with the postponement of elections and the possibility of the President running for a third term, it raises questions on his plan to address power in the presidency and create a more democratic system. Sall’s decision to postpone the elections was overturned by the Constitutional Court of Senegal, with balloting now taking place on Sunday. Read more about Senegal’s “Constitutional Coup” with this piece translated from French by Worldcrunch: Is Democracy In Africa A Lost Cause? 

📸 PHOTO DU JOUR

United States President Joe Biden and Leo Varadkar, Taoiseach of Ireland, during a St. Patrick's Day celebration in Washington, DC on Sunday, on March 17. In a surprise announcement, the Irish prime minister shared his plans to step down from his position and as the Fine Gael party leader. Varadkar is expected to vacate his role before Ireland’s next general election in 2025. — Photo: Leigh Vogel - Pool Via Cnp.ZUMA

👉  MORE FROM WORLDCRUNCH  

• Peak Putin: Mind Games With The World, Escalation In Ukraine — FRANCE INTER

• Trieste Postcard: When A "Dump" For Migrants Is A Political Choice — LA STAMPA

• Narcos, Argentina-Style: Is Rosario Turning Into The New Medellin?— CLARÍN

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