Despite long-term hostilities between their respective governments, Israeli and Lebanese social media users have shared their love for the same TikTok trend in recent days.
Scores of young Israelis have taken to the video app to post brief clips of them enjoying Sara Al Zakaria's Arabic-language hit “Baby”.
Israeli law enforcement regards its northern neighbour as an "enemy state" and Israeli citizens or any other person who holds any passport bearing stamps, visas, or seals issued by Israel are prohibited from entry to Lebanon.
Libyan star Joudy Alhouti’s “Wesh Jabak, and Mohamed Ramadan’s “Bum Bum” also made waves on Hebrew TikTok last summer, with Al Zakaria’s success simply being the latest example of musical cultural exchange. Several viral posts on the short-form video site show a female IDF soldiers dancing to the hit.
@liel_timor שרה אלזכריה את אליפות! 😍 #ערבית #foryou #viral #rge
♬ צליל מקורי - Liel&timor
@shahar.yr @saraalzakariaofficial #foryou ?
♬ original sound - 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 🎧
@itshanimashiach תסתכלו רק על האחורית צד ימין🤍
♬ original sound - 𝐉𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐭 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐧 🎧
Some Israeli users wrote that while they are not Arabic speakers they still wished to partake in the trend. According to a survey by Israeli telecommunications firm Bezeq 54 per cent of young Israelis are active on the app. Sara Al Zakaria’s songs have previously spent 25 weeks on the Lebanese music charts, and Ms Al Zakaria's "Tigi Netjawaz Bilser is currently at 102 across Israel’s combined music chart.
Writing for the liberal Israeli newspaper Haaretz, journalist Sheren Falah Saab suggests that Al Zakaria’s music “reflects the voice of the young generation. This is not the legendary Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum nor the conservative Lebanese singer Fairuz, who sang of Al-Aqsa and the liberation of Palestine.
“In a clip that lasts about 15 seconds, Al Zakaria represents the Arabs who do not constitute a security threat or take a strong political stance. These are ordinary people coping with everyday life. Al Zakaria’s image perfectly reflects that of the Arab so beloved by Israel: superficial, funny, cool, lacking any political opinion,” she continued.
However, she argued that the TikTok app, “is merely a tranquilliser for young Israeli users, something to anaesthetise them and dull their senses. As long as Israelis don’t dare to get to know Arab culture more deeply, and not only through TikTok, seeing the Arab as the Other will never change.”
The Arabic language in Israel is spoken natively by over 20 per cent of the Israeli population, predominantly by Israeli Arabs, but also by Jews who arrived in Israel from Arab countries and their descendants.
