The Robbery of October and Layla Murad

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Israel does not stop distorting the facts; they claimed that falafel is an Israeli invention, despite the fact that the word 'falafel' has Pharaonic origins. If you have watched a number of foreign films, not just Israeli ones, you will find that they have falsified our victory in October. They admitted defeat in the early days and attributed the rest to a victory for themselves. We must remember that we did not make any effort for the world to see the Egyptian victory.

Our films that addressed the 73 battle, we only watch them, and they are technically not up to international standards. We do not have any cinematic plan to present to the world the truth of October 6. Meanwhile, the Israeli narrative has found believers. Even Ashraf Marwan, who was given a military funeral by the late President Hosni Mubarak because he was one of the heroes who played a pivotal role in deceiving the Israeli intelligence, they succeeded in exporting a completely opposite narrative using writers and also film footage.

Currently, they are presenting a theatrical performance claiming that Leila Mourad converted to Islam superficially to ensure she would not be persecuted or have her artistic activity stopped in Egypt. The Egyptian person deals simply and flexibly with all religions. Egyptians loved Leila Mourad when she was Jewish, and when she embraced Islam in 1946, their love for her did not diminish; they reached the peak of their affection. Her first religion was not an obstacle; she was the dream girl of Egyptians since the late thirties, and just as the Egyptian Jewish musician Dawood Hosni composed for her, so did Mohamed Abdel Wahab, Mohamed El Qasabgi, and Riad El Sunbati.

What did we do with Leila Mourad?

The rumor of her donation to Israel was launched in revenge by her ex-husband Anwar Wajdi in 1953, after a marriage that lasted 8 years. Indeed, the Arab boycott office issued a decision to prohibit the circulation or display of her films and songs in all Arab media. After Anwar Wajdi realized that he would suffer financially because he had produced many films for her, he retracted and claimed that a certain Egyptian journalist was the one who spread that falsehood on his behalf. Extensive investigations were conducted with Layla Murad by one of the senior officers, a member of the second tier of the Free Officers Organization, Wagih Abaza, and all circumstances proved that Layla Murad never renounced her Egyptian identity, never retracted her Islam, and never donated anything to Israel.

During the investigations, love found its way between them, and they married in secret. Layla gave birth to her eldest son, Ashraf, who passed away about a year ago. Wagih Abaza delayed for several years in recognizing Ashraf legally, as we had not yet discovered DNA at that time. Layla Murad left us in 1995, and according to her will, her body was buried from the Mosque of Sayyida Nafisa. Also according to her will, there was no announcement and no cameras were present, and we had not yet known about mobile phones. At that time, malicious rumors spread suggesting that Layla was buried according to Jewish rituals.

The second son of Layla Murad, the director, writer, and actor Zaki Fatin Abdel Wahab, had registered his objection to the series that dealt with her life, 'Qalbi Dalili' in 2009. At the same time, he had prepared a dramatic concept in which Layla Murad participated, to present her life and correct many mistakes. As usual, no one was enthusiastic, and four years ago, Zaki Fatin Abdel Wahab passed away. I do not know if anyone kept the script that included clips of Layla Murad's voice, or if it was lost as usual in the crowd.

We bear the responsibility for everything that happened from forgery, from the falafel to the October victory!

Quoted from 'Al-Masry Al-Youm'