Tomorrow is the 40th anniversary of the death of Umm Kulthoum, the most powerful and popular singer in the Arab world and a significant icon on posters in Tahrir Square during Cairo’s Arab Spring.
There will be a number of broadcasts and meetings to mark the date, but we hear that a commemorative concert has been cancelled due to recent anti-government unrest, known as ‘the situation’.
It’s the 38th anniversary of her death, if I’m not mistaking. If this is an event that merits a celebration, then there should be several every year. You’re making a valid point, but I don’t think the occasion that’s being ignored is particularly remarkable.