Singer Haifa Wehbe angers Nubians with monkey lyric

Lebanese singer Haifa Wehbe, one of the Middle East's most controversial sex symbols, has provoked outrage after releasing a song that refers to black Egyptians as monkeys.

Wehbe, a 35-year-old model turned actress and singer, faces a lawsuit from Egyptian Nubians over her latest single Babba feen? - or Where is Daddy? - in which a child sings the lyrics 'Where is my teddy bear and the Nubian monkey?'.

Wehbe, who is one of the Arab world's biggest pop stars, has since apologised for the lyric. She claims that the song was written by an Egyptian songwriter who told her that 'Nubian monkey' was an innocent name for a popular children's game.

However a group of 30 Nubian lawyers have submitted an official complaint to Egypt's public prosecutor and are calling for the song to be banned from the country’s television and radio stations. They argue that the song has fuelled discrimination against the Nubian community in Egpyt, with some Nubian children too afraid to attend school.

The controversy has highlighted the plight of the two-million strong Nubian community in Egypt. Although they are descended from one of Africa's most ancient black civilisations, Nubians often face marginalisation in modern Egypt.

"Everyone is upset," Sayed Maharous, the Nubian owner of a coffee shop in Cairo, told the Guardian. Adul Raouf Mohammed, another Nubian shopkeeper, agreed. "To compare a human being to an animal is insulting in any culture. She has denigrated an entire community of people, and now some of our children are afraid to go into school because they know they will be called monkeys in the playground."

This not the first time that Wehbe has been the object of controversy. Brought up in Beirut, Wehbe came to fame when she won the runner-up to Miss Lebanon in 1990 but had to relinquish the title when it emerged she was married. After several years of modelling she released her first album in 2002 and one of her earliest hits, Hey, Good Little Muslim Boy, sparked outrage for its provocative lyrics.

Meanwhile her skimpy stage outfits have angered conservative Muslims and her frequent forays into the political arena have also sparked debate, especially her very public praise for Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah during the 2006 conflict between Israel and Lebanon.

In 2006 Wehbe made People magazine's list of 'top five beauties around the globe' along with Indian actress Aishwarya Rai and Kenyan model Emma Too. According to her website, Wehbe recently shot an ad for Louis Vuitton, becoming the first person in the Arabic world to model for the French fashion house.