A video of Tunisian singer Mohsen Cherif performing in front of Jews and shouting pro-Israel cheers drew angry reactions in Tunis and triggered online campaigns to revoke his citizenship.
In a video posted on several websites, Tunisian singer Mohsen Cherif is seen singing to Jewish audience and saying he hopes to see them in May in the island of Djerba, where thousands of Jews from all over the world go for pilgrimage.
In the same performance, Cherif is seen shouting "Long live Bibi Netanyahu!" in response to a request by one of the audience.
It is not clear where or when the performance took place, yet the posting of the video stirred the indignation of Tunisians who called upon the government to revoke Cherif’s citizenship and accused him of treason.
Several groups were formed on the social networking website Facebook to garner support for boycotting Cherif’s concerts and banning him from appearing on state-run T.V. and privately-owned satellite channels.
The campaigns drew thousands of supporters. The group "Together to revoke the citizenship of Mohsen Cherif" alone has more than 27,000 members.
Other groups like "Mohsen Cherif haters on Facebook," "Together to banish the Zionist Mohsen Cherif from Tunisia," and "Together to punish the traitor Mohsen Cherif" also attracted a lot of members.
In response to the controversy stirred by the performance, Cherif issued a statement on his website saying that he did not who Netanyahu is and that he was just performing in a concert.
He pointed out that the issue was blown out of proportion and that what he did was not as critical as people have made it sound.
Cherif’s response drew more angry reactions and Facebook users started posting videos to "teach Mohsen Cherif history." The videos featured the 1985 Israeli raid on the headquarters of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) in Hammam al-Shatt in Tunisia. In addition to 60 PLO members, many Tunisian civilians were killed in the attack.
Tunisian-Israeli relations
Tunisia does not have diplomatic relations with Israel. Communication between the two countries started in 1994 through the Belgian embassies in Tel Aviv and Tunisia. In 1996, Interest Offices were established in both countries.
In 2000, the low-key diplomatic ties were severed based on the recommendation of the Arab Summit in Cairo due to escalation of violence against Palestinians and the brutal repression of the second intifada that broke out in the same year.
The Tunisian island of Djerba remains, however, a link between both countries. Thousands of Jews from Israel as well as France, Italy, and North America flock to the island, located off Tunisia’s east coast, to perform the pilgrimage ritual in el-Ghriba Synagogue.
The synagogue houses the oldest hand written copy of the Torah. Jews go there to celebrate the holiday of LagBaOmar, which usually falls in May and takes place after the celebration of Passover.