Yacoub Shaheen wowed the Arab World with his incredible vocals throughout Arab Idol's fourth season. And on Saturday, the Palestinian Syriac Christian singer officially became the competition's winner.
This marks the second time a Palestinian has won, making the small Middle Eastern country the first Arab nation to win the immensely popular singing competition twice.
Mohammed Assaf, who hails from Gaza, won the second season of the series. He has gone on to become a sensation throughout the Arab world, even inspiring a film by Academy Award-nominated Palestinian director Hany Abu Assad.
Palestinians see it as a national victory
Throughout Palestine, people flocked to cafes and public places to watch the finale together.
"It is a national day. A national historic day for Palestine," Mohammed Abu Ali, who was at a Gaza cafe with his family, told The Guardian after the win.
People could be seen hugging and cheering as the victory was announced. And of course, drivers honked their car horns as they drove through the streets, hailing the win.
Palestinian leaders had urged their people to vote in support of Shaheen in the run-up to the finale and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas had even personally met Shaheen in Lebanon, prior to the finale.
The winner is chosen based on popular vote by the audience. Television viewers text in their votes via special codes.
"Yacoub won with his voice, his education, his good manners, as well as his love for his people, Bethlehem and Palestine," Norma Shaheen, the winner's mother, told cheering crowds in their hometown of Bethlehem.
Who is Yacoub Shaheen?
Shaheen's family resides in Bethlehem. His father works as a carpenter.
The 23-year-old is Syriac Christian, a small community that is part of the Assyrian nation (and which is sometimes referred to as Aramean). This drew him support all the way from Northern Iraq and other pockets around the region.
There are two to four million Assyrians in the Middle East, according to PBS. About 5,000 Syriac Christians reside in Palestine, with the rest spread throughout Iraq, Syria, Turkey, Iran, Lebanon and Palestine. They trace their origins to the ancient Assyrian Empire, which was powerful thousands of years ago in Mesopotamia.
Church services for Syriac Christians are conducted in Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic, the language Jesus would have spoken.
With the rise of ISIS in Iraq, the Assyrian community has faced significant persecution. Syriac Christian leaders have called the extremist organizations' actions against their community a "genocide."
Shaheen is a true Palestinian nationalist
After his victory, Shaheen performed a staunchly nationalist Palestinian song.
“My pledge and my oath, my blood is Palestinian," the lyrics said. And it's definitely not the first time he sang about his homeland throughout the competition.
Similar to his predecessor Assaf, Shaheen now serves as a powerful example of his people's resilience and strength in the face of Israeli occupation and oppression.
In total, four Palestinians made it to the competition. One of the others, Amir Dandan, who is a Palestinian citizen of Israel, made it to the final three along with Shaheen.
Arab Idol is the "most watched" television program throughout the Middle East and North Africa, Al Jazeera's correspondent Bernard Smith said from Bethlehem.
"Assaf is now one of the biggest stars in the region. Yacoub will now also have to adjust to life as a Palestinian celebrity," he said.