A screengrab from the music video, with Momary (C) the “Israeli” character surrounded by what is supposed to be the leaders of (L-R) Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt and the UAE (MustafaalMomry X)
Yemeni comedian and content creator Mustafa al-Momry has gone viral with a new satirical music video, “Love of Israel”, which playfully critiques Arab leaders for their perceived closeness to Israel amid the ongoing war on Gaza.
The three-minute and 41-second music video, posted on X on 5 April and now viewed over 370,000 times, blends humour, irony, and bold political commentary.
It features Momry dressed in traditional Jewish religious clothing, portraying an exaggerated Israeli character who interacts with four costumed figures representing the leaders of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, and Jordan.
In a comedic portrayal, the Arab leaders are seen offering him gifts – flowers, fruit, and incense – while he sings the opening line: “The love of Israel is a Zionist project… You, countries which have normalised.”
The video references countries that have formal controversial ties with Israel, like Egypt, Jordan, and the UAE, and playfully includes Saudi Arabia, which has not yet normalised relations but is working towards doing so, despite the war on Gaza.
Using facial filters, Momry mimics the appearances of King Abdullah II of Jordan, President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi of Egypt, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman of Saudi Arabia, and President Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan of the UAE. His lyrics riff off popular jokes and public frustrations often expressed within the Arab world, combining political satire with social commentary.
One tongue-in-cheek line names the UAE “the founder of normalisation”, referencing the 2020 controversial Abraham Accords – a US-brokered agreement that saw Israel establish ties with the UAE, Bahrain, and Morocco.
In another line, Momry’s character sings: “From the Euphrates to the Nile is not enough for me… this land is mine, mine, mine!” – a satirical nod to the so-called “Greater Israel” theory, which has long circulated in political discourse inside Israel and across the region.
The Arab leaders in the video appear indifferent to the suffering in Gaza, while professing exaggerated admiration for Israel. Meanwhile, Momry satirises various domestic challenges like pollution and economic hardship, suggesting a disconnect between leadership priorities and people’s concerns.
The video ends on a striking symbolic note. In its final scene, Momry appears as Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar – shown sitting calmly on a chair before defiantly throwing a stick at an approaching Israeli drone, a reference to a widely shared moment before his reported death last year.
Masked men in keffiyehs also emerge from a tunnel and abduct Momry’s Israeli character. A screen, previously showing the Israeli flag, is replaced with the Palestinian flag, bringing the satire full circle with a nod to Palestinian resistance.
Mixed reactions
The video has sparked mixed reactions online – praised by many who see it as a bold critique of Arab governments’ inaction, while others accused Momry of aligning too closely with the Houthis, the Iran-backed group in Yemen which had launched attacks on Israel in support of Gaza.
“Wonderful work, very effective against the enemy and the hypocrites. Keep going,” one X user said.
“You forgot to include the Moroccan king,” another X user pointed out.
This isn’t the first time Momry has used satire to comment on geopolitics. In 2024, he released another song titled “Ship, Ship,” poking fun at the US-UK airstrikes on Yemen and Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping lanes.
Momry currently has over 216,000 followers on X and more than 3.2 million YouTube subscribers. His mix of political theatre and digital humour continues to resonate widely, especially in moments of heightened regional tension.
