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Arrested humor: Comedian Nour Hajjar detained in censorship case [1]
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Date: 2023-09-11
This piece was first published by SMEX, on August 30, 2023, and was written by Safaa Ayyad. An edited version is republished here under a content-sharing agreement.
Lebanon’s crackdown on freedom of opinion and expression shows no signs of abating. While journalists, activists, and even lawyers have long been targeted, the state has seemingly found a new target: comedian Nour Hajjar.
On Friday, August 25, stand-up comedian Nour Hajjar was called in by the military police in Al-Rihaniye and held for over 11 hours for questioning. This detention was prompted by a joke from a recent show in which he commented on army members working as delivery drivers to make a living in Lebanon. Hajjar critiqued how the government struggles to pay its military personnel, leading them to take on multiple jobs to make ends meet.
While Hajjar was released that day, the case remained open and he was directed to return to the Military Police headquarters a few days later to sign a bail bond. Meanwhile, an online campaign inciting violence against the comedian began.
On Tuesday, August 29, when Hajjar arrived at the Military Police headquarters, as instructed, he was unexpectedly transferred to the Criminal Investigation Department. Lebanon’s Public Prosecutor, Judge Ghassan Oueidat, had decided on Hajjar's transfer without notifying his legal representative.
There, Hajjar was questioned about another comedy clip from one of his stand-up performances in 2018 and subsequently arrested. This marked Hajjar’s second summons in just a matter of days.
The second arrest was based on two reports filed by Dar Al-Fatwa — Lebanon's Muslim Sunni authority — regarding another five-year-old joke in which Hajjar makes fun of his mother’s actions during a Muslim funeral. Hajjar was accused of “committing crimes against the Islamic religion, inciting religious and sectarian discord, ridiculing the Qur’an, and undermining national unity.”
Judge Ghassan Oueidat decided to release Hajjar after seven hours of detention on the condition that he keep the court informed of his whereabouts. However, it remains unclear whether Hajjar will still face prosecution and be summoned for further questioning or whether he managed to avoid charges by apologizing and removing the controversial comedic videos.
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https://advox.globalvoices.org/2023/09/11/arrested-humor-comedian-nour-hajjar-detained-in-censorship-case/
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