Hit Song Criticizing Iran-Iraq War Stokes Controversy in Iran

A scene from pareh sang, youtube (Arabic Website)
A scene from pareh sang, youtube (Arabic Website)
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Hit Song Criticizing Iran-Iraq War Stokes Controversy in Iran

A scene from pareh sang, youtube (Arabic Website)
A scene from pareh sang, youtube (Arabic Website)

Iran’s up-and-coming artist Mehdi Yarrahi is believed to have been banned from performing a few days after releasing his anti-war ‘Pareh Sang’ song.

Yarrahi, an Ahwazi Arab, is known for his highly controversial works and is one of the very few artists who maintained a daringly close take on social developments within the Iranian community.

Etemad daily reported that Yarrahi was barred from publishing any of his works after the culture and media ministry summoned managers from the Iranian music publisher Jame Sabz, which sponsored Pareh Sang’s production.

Criticizing the Iraq-Iran war which spanned over eight years, Yarrahi’s hit song expresses the post-war anguish lived in Arab areas witnessed bloody conflict in southwestern Iran.

For the time being, Jame Sabz Manager Farhad Goi Abadi refused to make any statements involving Yarrahi’s work or being questioned by authorities, however, confirmed he will be meeting soon with culture ministry officials.

The reported dispute, on the other hand, was denied by the Public Relations Department of the Iranian Ministry of Culture and Information which said pop singer Yarrahi was not barred in any way.

“I'm the last martyr of this tribe ... My tribe, which has no bread or water,” Pareh Sang’s powerful lyrics say, echoing Yarrahi’s struggle which he labels a “torn stone.”

“Death has won and once again the mind has died and all our memories are subject to war ... do tell me where we are now and in the name of the war pen. Why have not we had a life yet ?!” the lyrics, sung in Farsi, say.

Hard-line media close to the Revolutionary Guard considered the Pareh Sang’s video clip as an appalling attack on the beliefs and values of the “holy war.”

While ultra-conservatives blasted Yarrahi’s work, other musicians and experts applauded his exceptional knack for balancing traditional and pop culture to deliver a wide-reaching product that resonates with Iranians everywhere.

The singer is also very apt in his social innuendoes and references-- throughout his work, Yarrahi was very shrewd in invoking crises faced by Iran such as sanctions and weather pollution. A majority of his work is dedicated to delivering on the suffering of Arabs living south of Iran, namely Ahwaz.

A year ago, at one of his concerts, he wore a mask to protest the pollution. He participated in recent protests that took place in Ahwaz against the diversion of the Karun River. Citing his unmatched passion for defending the environment, southern locals have dubbed Yarrahi “the son of Karun.”



Israel's Netanyahu Heads to Hungary, Defying ICC Arrest Warrant

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 16, 2025. Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 16, 2025. Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
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Israel's Netanyahu Heads to Hungary, Defying ICC Arrest Warrant

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 16, 2025. Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attends a joint press conference with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the Prime Minister's office in Jerusalem, February 16, 2025. Ohad Zwigenberg/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu begins a four-day visit to Hungary on Thursday, defying an International Criminal Court arrest warrant over allegations of war crimes in Gaza as Israel has expanded its military operation in the enclave.

As a founding member of the ICC, Hungary is theoretically obliged to arrest and hand over anyone subject to a warrant from the court but Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban made clear when he issued the invitation that Hungary would not respect the ruling.

Netanyahu is due to meet Orban ahead of a press conference at around 1000 GMT.

In Budapest, workers were constructing a stage in the Buda Castle on Wednesday, where Orban was scheduled to welcome Netanyahu in a ceremony with military honors on Thursday morning and security forces could be seen near the central Budapest hotel where Netanyahu will be staying, The AP news reported.

The visit will be only the second he has made abroad since the International Criminal Court issued warrants to arrest both him and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant last November, but details of his program have been limited apart from a planned visit to a Holocaust memorial.

He visited Washington in February to meet close ally US President Donald Trump. Neither Israel nor the United States are members of the ICC, with Washington arguing the ICC could be used for politically motivated prosecutions.

Orban invited Netanyahu to visit a day after the ICC issued its arrest warrant over allegations of war crimes in Gaza, where Israel launched an offensive following a devastating attack by thousands of Hamas fighters on the October 7 attack.

Since then, the Israeli campaign has killed more than 50,000 Palestinians and devastated the Gaza Strip, triggering protests worldwide and prompting South Africa to launch separate legal action in the International Court of Justice, a different body to the ICC, accusing Israel of genocide.