Nour Hajjar, a 31-year-old Lebanese comedian, on the stage at awk.word. (Photo provided by awk.word)
BEIRUT — "You noticed that all the Toters couriers are in the army, right?" A 35-second joke shared on social media could be the cause behind the summons of Lebanese comedian, Nour Hajjar, by the military police. Contacted by L'Orient-Le Jour, Hajjar confirmed on Thursday that he had been contacted earlier in the day by the police. This summons comes two days after a video of him on stage, telling a joke about the army, was published on the social media platforms of awk.word, a comedian community.
"I was contacted today and told to come to the offices of the military police, and that I could bring a lawyer if I wished," Hajjar said. "I responded that I would be there tomorrow morning at 9 a.m., but they didn't tell me why I was being summoned."
Asked about the possibility that it was related to the joke he told about the Lebanese army, he responded, "Maybe, but it's a joke like all the others I do. I don't want to harm anyone." In the video in question, Hajjar is seen on stage saying, "you noticed that all the Toters couriers are in the army, right? Can you imagine if Israel strikes Lebanon and the whole army is with Toters? We'll see 30 mopeds arriving at the border! Just one rocket, and we'll splash Israel with mustard and honey sauce!" Laughter from the audience follows.
Awk.word presents itself as the first stand-up comedy platform in Lebanon, and was launched in 2018 in Lebanon with the goal of creating a community of Arabic stand-up comedy enthusiasts. On Instagram, awk.word has 128,000 followers, and on TikTok, 178,000 followers.
Dany Abou Jaoude, one of the founders of the initiative, told L'Orient-Le Jour that "this is the first time someone has been summoned due to a sketch aired on awk.word's networks."
Using humor to address the crisis
"Through his joke, Nour Hajjar highlights the fact that our soldiers have low salaries and are forced to have a second job," said Abou Jaoude. "Our intention is not to harm the Lebanese Army but to discuss the overall situation of the country. Humor is used to shed light on societal issues."
Indeed, law enforcement has been severely impacted by Lebanon's economic crisis. The average monthly salary of a soldier is now around $50, compared to about $800 before the crisis, and an officer's salary is around $100 dollars.
In response to this situation, several countries have provided aid to the Lebanese Army in recent years. The United States and the UN have been providing temporary financial support to over 70,000 soldiers since late June, who will receive $100 per month for six months. Qatar has also provided financial assistance.
For now, awk.word has not removed Hajjar's video from its social networks, but the group is willing to comply "if an official request is made in that regard," said Jaoude. "Recently, we've seen an increase in attacks on freedom of expression," warned another awk.word founder. "They are increasingly trying to censor artists, comedians, and films." "We're not surprised to see these attacks, and we're ready to fight for freedom of expression, but we're not sure if we can win, and that's what makes us anxious," he added.
Two months ago, comedian Shaden Fakih was fined LL1.8 million by the Military Tribunal. She was accused of "humiliation and damaging the reputation of the Internal Security Forces" for posting a video in which she called the ISF and asked if they could deliver sanitary napkins to her due to the restrictions imposed during the COVID-19 lockdown in Lebanon.
On the eve of his summons, Hajjar is not anxious. "But if it turns out I was summoned for a joke, there's really a reason to be annoyed... I find it strange that attention is being given to things like this rather than others, considering all the crises the country is going through."
