Although prior to his participation in '' Arab Idol '' , Assaf stated he had been briefly detained by the security forces of the conservative Hamas party and paramilitary group — which maintains '' de facto '' control over Gaza — on over 20 different occasions in an effort to dissuade him from singing , the group has not suppressed Palestinian support for Assaf or viewership of the show . Signalling a shift in attitude , a Gaza-based Hamas MP , Yahya Mousa , lauded Assaf and referred to him the " ambassador for Palestinian art . " '' The Idol '' is a 2015 Palestinian drama film directed by Hany Abu-Assad . It was shown in the Special Presentations section of the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival . '' The Idol '' was partially filmed on location in Gaza , the first feature film to be shot there in decades , with further filmings in Jenin , Amman , Beirut and Cairo . '' The Idol '' was produced in association with the Doha Film Institute and the support of the Netherlands Film Fund . the film was selected as the Palestinian entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 89th Academy Awards but it was not nominated
89th Academy Awards
89th Academy Awards
Mohammed Assaf