Abdel-Basset al-Sarout: Controversial singer of Syria's war

The Aisha mosque in Idlib's al-Dana town on Sunday resonated with the words of Abdel-Basset al-Sarout, a Syrian footballer turned revolutionary song-writer and rebel, as gun-toting fighters and civilians bid farewell to their icon.

Shrouded in white, the body of al-Sarout, who died at 27, was carried out of the mosque on the shoulders of his fans. In mourning, some tried to touch his lifeless face while others held out their arms to take photographs.

Al-Sarout died of his wounds after fighting against the Syrian government army in Tel Meleh, a town in the governorate of Hama that is part of the war's last rebel-held enclave.

Read the full article and more in Al-Jazeera English.