Assault on a Syrian singer in Aleppo... First official comment

Arabian Sea Newspaper - Exclusive

((Bahr Al Arab)) Follow-ups: The Syrian Ministry of Interior denied on Friday any connection of public security personnel to the assault on popular singer Omar Khairy in the Aleppo countryside. Ministry spokesman Nour al-Din al-Baba said: "We categorically deny what is being circulated on social media about a popular singer being assaulted by public security personnel in the city of Al-Bab in the Aleppo countryside, and no security agency is related to the mentioned incident." He continued: "We are facing many systematic disinformation campaigns aimed at distorting the image of public security. We practice our work with transparency, and if a mistake is found, we apologize and hold accountable, but we will not remain silent about lies and fabricated charges." Information spread on several pages on Facebook saying that what happened was due to Khairy's support for the former President Bashar al-Assad's regime, while some indicated that the incident came because the perpetrators rejected the singing because it does not align with their beliefs. In video clips documenting what happened, a group of people appeared drawing on Khairy's face, shaving his hair, and directing insulting phrases at him, and forced him to repeat phrases in support of the transitional authority. Activists said that while Khairy was performing at a wedding party, a group of young men stopped the party, arrested him, and assaulted him.