Mo Salah, Mo Problems
The Egyptian icon has long been considered the 'Pride of the Arabs,' yet that status has come into question amid Israel's war on Gaza.
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Amidst the dilapidated, misshapen buildings that characterize much of downtown Cairo lies a mural of Mohamed Salah that was once a place of pilgrimage.
Nestled alongside cultural icons such as the divine diva Umm Kulthum and novelist Naguib Mahfouz, the Egyptian footballer’s face looks out over a street café where locals gathered to watch Salah’s Liverpool games. It was a testament to Salah’s unmatched popularity across the Arab world, where he has bestowed with many titles, including the Prince of Egypt, the King of Egypt, the Fourth Pyramid, and the Pride of the Arabs.
Yet in the wake of Oct. 7 and Israel’s ongoing bombardment of Gaza, Salah’s popularity has taken a significant hit.
At first, this was due to the length of time that Salah took to comment on the war and the ensuing humanitarian crisis. For nearly 10 days, Salah remained silent while more than 3000 Palestinians were killed in the besieged strip.
Social media took aim at the Egyptian star. Some shamed Salah for his silence, while others accused him of being more “British than Egyptian.” Critics pointed to other Europe-based Egyptian players—Mahmoud Trezeguet, Ahmed Hassan Kouka, and Sam Morsy—who had expressed solidarity with Gaza. Salah, they argued, had shown his true colours.
“It’s much nicer, and more beneficial, to count your millions than to count dead Palestinian bodies,” read one comment on Instagram.
Salah’s silence was even the topic of debate on Egyptian television, including on the popular Egyptian talk show Al Hekaya (The Story) hosted by Amr Adeeb.
"Everyone sees you as the Pride of the Arabs and to be the Pride of the Arabs you must not abandon the Arabs when they need you the most," Mr Adeeb said in a segment in October.
"There is still time. To arrive late is better than not to arrive at all. This is the time to speak up,” he continued.
Some of that public pressure seemed to die down on Oct. 16 when the Egyptian Red Crescent announced that the Liverpool star had made a “significant donation” to provide aid to the people of Gaza.
The next day, Salah posted a short video on his social media platforms calling for humanitarian aid to be sent to Gaza.
"It's not always easy to speak in times like this. There has been too much violence and too much heartbreaking brutality," the 31-year-old forward said in the video message delivered straight to the camera. "The escalations in recent weeks have been unbearable to witness. All lives are sacred and must be protected. The massacres need to stop, families are being torn apart.
"Humanity must prevail,” he concluded.
Even then, Salah received some backlash from those who felt his message was “too neutral” and should have been more critical of Israel’s actions. On Twitter, one user suggested Salah was participating in “neutral activism” while another replied to Salah’s video saying “your sweet non-condemning statement wronged us.”
As the most famous Arab and Muslim athlete in the world, Salah was a symbol of hope and a source of pride for a country that had precious little to celebrate over the past decade. He led Egypt to its first World Cup appearance in 28 years and ascended to legend status with Liverpool, contributing to the team's victories in the Premier League and Champions League and scoring over 200 goals in the process.
Nevertheless, skepticism towards Salah surfaced during the 2019 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament. His teammate Amr Warda faced accusations of sexual harassment, resulting in his removal from the national team and sparking a countrywide scandal. Salah responded by defending his teammate on social media, saying that “everyone deserves a second chance.” Warda was reinstated to the team shortly following Salah’s statement.
Four years on, Salah is now confronted with a broader array of critics questioning whether he genuinely embodies the pride of the Arabs.
The unprecedented wave of criticism speaks to the current mood in the region as the death toll continues to mount following more than 70 days of war. Nearly 20,000 people have killed in Gaza since the war began two months ago, according to the Gaza Health Ministry; 1,139 people were killed in Israel in the October attack, including 695 civilians.
In response to the war, which The New York Times noted is killing women and children at a faster pace than in almost any other conflict in the world this century, Arabs have found a range of ways to voice their opposition, including through mass demonstrations, boycotts, and social media campaigns. Some Arab athletes, including Salah’s own countrymen, have even used their goal celebrations to show solidarity with the Palestinian cause.
Instead of joining in mass displays of solidarity, Salah chose to make a donation to provide aid to the people of Gaza. While it does not get the social media engagement that others have received, it will certainly have a much greater impact.
And say Salah had spoken out in support of Palestine during the early days of the conflict? What would that have achieved? Would it have miraculously resurrected the lives of children buried beneath the rubble? Would it have prevented further slaughter, or ushered a lasting peace? No athlete—not even Mo Salah—has that power.
Nevertheless, Salah is more than a footballer—he's the embodiment of Arab excellence, carrying the region’s hopes, expectations, and struggles on his shoulders. Beyond the pitch, he stands as a source of communal pride, a living testament to the potential within Egypt and the broader Arab community.
Yet even Salah, on occasion, can break their collective hearts.
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Will be watching AFCON closely to see how he is received