DUBAI — The Saudi and Arab community on Twitter erupted with reactions and responses to Saudi comedian Nasser Al-Gassabi's satirical TV series "Selfie," but in particular over the episode in which he mocks Daesh (the so-called Islamic State), according to Al-Quds Al-Arabi. Viewers of the show, which Nasser dubbed a "social comedy with a message," were in two minds about the way he portrayed the terrorist group and made fun of their head-chopping antics, jihad and employment tactics.
Since the episode aired on the second day of Ramadan, the Arabic hashtag #selfie has been trending in the Middle East. The episode revolves around a father, played by Nasser, who travels to Syria in search of his son, who went there to join Daesh. When he arrives in the troubled country, he finds himself involved with the jihadist group as well.
While many praised the funny man for his witty way of addressing the Daesh crisis, others were much less impressed and bombarded him with curses. The actor also received death threats from Daesh and was even being branded an apostate by the Imam of a mosque in Asir.
Impressed with Nasser's bravery, @SultanAlQassemi tweeted, "Watching @algassabinasser's Selfie, a Saudi show based on comedy sketches poking fun at ISIS & Al Qaeda filth. Very brave & necessary."
@hussainyalhejji loved the episode and said, "Thank you very mush. You illustrated everything about #ISIS for those who turned off their minds." @tahirmessi10 thought that "There isn't any better way than comedy to deliver a thought and Nasir did that in a perfect way," while @ShakesAlDabbous agreed that this is "Showing terrorism at its finest #selfie thank you Nasser al Qasabi."
A tweep by the name of Jaleeb al Jazrawi sent a threatening tweet to Nasser warning him, "I swear to Allah that you will regret everything you have said. The Jihadists will not calm down until your head has been chopped off." This triggered a rival hashtag under the name "Nasser al Qasabi's head is wanted."
The 53-year-old comedian calmly addressed his critics and over 700,000 Twitter followers saying, "My Twitter is overflowing with people cursing at me, threatening me and hating on me. I'd like for them to calm down a little. Hey, it's only the first day of Ramadan!"
In an interview with Al Arabiya TV, Nasser responded to his critics by saying, "We are from this community not another planet and we are not here to present something unacceptable. As a Saudi citizen we're entitled to our own opinions, because we love our country and care about it. It's any Saudi's right to address certain issues.
"We have presented our ideas out in the open, but the problem is not with our work but with the way some people have received it. They've watched our simple idea and made it into something much bigger than it really is. It's a lot more simple than that." - Agencies
