Lebanese Pop Star Haifa Wehbe Sides With Hezbollah

BEIRUT, Lebanon — The Lebanese pop diva Haifa Wehbe may share her name with an historic Israeli port town, but her heart lies with Hezbollah.

The raven-haired former beauty queen has emerged as an unlikely supporter of the militant Shiite group's portly firebrand leader, Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, 46

Arguably, the Arab world's leading sex symbol, the singer's style is frowned upon by conservative clerics. In one video, the chart topper cavorts in outfits that leave little of her ample bosom to the imagination, singing: "Here is the pain, kiss the pain, make it better. When you kiss the pain, the pain is over."

But to Ms. Wehbe, 30, whose brother died fighting Israel in the 1980s, Sheik Nasrallah is a national hero. "It's a land that has people to defend it, and therefore Nasrallah had a big role in defending Lebanon's honor and border," she said last week.

The man who has won her support appeared for the first time since his "victory"rally in September. In an interview on Hezbollah's al-Manar television channel, he threatened street protests to force early elections in Lebanon if the Islamic group's demands for more parliamentary representation were not met by November 13.

The country's western-backed Prime Minister Siniora has refused repeated calls for him to step down. And as the war of words escalates, a member of the cabinet, Joe Sarkis, said his Lebanese Forces Party was ready to take to the streets to "defend the Lebanese Republic."

In an attempt to calm tempers, Lebanon's parliamentary speaker, Nabih Berri, has called rival factions together for round-table talks.

Amid the tension, Lebanon's younger generation has been seeking respite from the saber-rattling rhetoric, and Beirut's bars this weekend were full of well-dressed 20-somethings drinking and listening to pop music by artists such as Ms. Wehbe.

"Haifa's music offers an escape from the daily tension of Lebanon's politics," a tourism student, Layale Harb, said. "She is certainly easier to dance to than Hezbollah war songs."

Ms. Wehbe won a beauty contest at the age of 16, was voted Miss Lebanon in 1995, and found fame across the Arab world as a fashion model. She features in a Pepsi advertisement with the Arsenal football player, Thierry Henry, and was named, earlier this year, as one of People magazine's 100 most beautiful women.