Walid Tawfiq accuses Israeli group of plagiarism

Lebanese singer Walid Tawfiq has accused an Israeli group of plagiarising a collection of his music. Speaking to Arabstoday, Tawfiq alleged that his songs were translated into Hebrew and passed off as Israeli originals. The furious singer added: "How dare they steal Arab art?" The Lebanese vocalist claims that the Arab media made the situation worse by using provocative titles that questioned his loyalty to the Arab world when reporting the story. Tawfiq added that the publications aimed to attract more readers at the expense of smearing his name, saying he felt sorry for them. “My songs and career should be testament enough of my patriotism to the Arab world,” he said. The singer went on to assert: “Israelis do not hesitate to steal Arab land, so why would they hesitate to steal Arab art?” Tawfiq also accused the same group of illegally copying the music of legendary late Egyptian singer Umm Kulthum, adding that “they will not get away with it.”