Lebanese singer Elissa. Photo courtesy of the artist.
It was a bit after 8:30 p.m. when she finally muted the TV in her second home. “Alright, I’ve heard enough, I’m ready for your questions,” Elissa said confidently, keeping one eye on the weather forecast.That evening, the Israeli strike on the Syrian Defense Ministry was making headlines, dominating most of the evening news just as it ended. Enough to put any idea of returning to Damascus out of her mind. “I don’t see myself going back there, not now, nor in the near future. I’m not at all ready,” stated the singer, who for a long time was persona non grata in Assad’s Syria, subject to repression and constant censorship. A look back: Elissa: The Syrian regime wanted to take me to court With good reason: Born to a father from Deir al-Ahmar (Baalbeck) and a Syrian mother from Wadi al-Nasara, Elissa became a celebrated and...
It was a bit after 8:30 p.m. when she finally muted the TV in her second home. “Alright, I’ve heard enough, I’m ready for your questions,” Elissa said confidently, keeping one eye on the weather forecast.That evening, the Israeli strike on the Syrian Defense Ministry was making headlines, dominating most of the evening news just as it ended. Enough to put any idea of returning to Damascus out of her mind. “I don’t see myself going back there, not now, nor in the near future. I’m not at all ready,” stated the singer, who for a long time was persona non grata in Assad’s Syria, subject to repression and constant censorship. A look back: Elissa: The Syrian regime wanted to take me to court With good reason: Born to a father from Deir al-Ahmar (Baalbeck) and a Syrian mother from Wadi al-Nasara, Elissa became a...
