"Saint Niswan": A conflict in the world of Palestinian hip-hop
Rapper Shabjdeed released SLV after both he and Saint Levant scheduled concerts for the same evening in Amman, and mocked Saint Levant's blend of politics, romance, and brands. Shabjdeed accuses him of "mixing Palestine with European lust."
A conflict within the Palestinian rap scene: Palestinian rapper Shabjdeed, who operates from the West Bank, released SLV in early August 2026, a diss track against Saint Levant, the pro-Palestinian star who previously caused a storm by praising the attack on Maccabi Tel Aviv fans in Amsterdam. The song was released a few days after the two announced separate concerts in Amman, Jordan, on the same evening. Shabjdeed was apparently annoyed that Levant booked the same day as him.
In the song, Shabjdeed attacks the way Levant combines politics, Palestinian identity, and celebrity. Among other things, he mocks his frequent preoccupation with women and romance, telling him he should have been called "Saint Niswan" - Saint Women.
Shabjdeed also criticizes Saint Levant's use of national symbols, mentioning the watermelon tattoo on his thigh, and accuses him of mixing Palestine with European lust to appeal to a Western audience. He further rails against the combination of political slogans like "Jerusalem is ours" with names like Mia Khalifa and Haifa Wehbe in his lyrics.
In the middle of the song, Shabjdeed drops the stage names: he addresses Saint Levant by his real name, Marwan, introduces himself by his own name, Odai, and suggests that if Saint Levant passes through the Allenby Bridge crossing (King Hussein Bridge), he will come to pick him up to add him to his WhatsApp group.
The diss arrived shortly after the expansion of Saint Levant's commercial activity worldwide. In July 2026, he was chosen as one of the new global ambassadors for Prada and was photographed for the campaign wearing a necklace of the map of historic Palestine. Following the release of the song, a discussion developed on social media about the differences in Palestinian representation between an artist living under occupation and an artist living in the diaspora, and about the connection between national identity, commercial brands, and the entertainment industry.
