Apartheid state? Israeli Arab wins second season of Israel's 'The Voice'

(Haaretz) Lina Makhoul, an Israeli-Arab of Christian parentage, is the winner of the second season of the Israeli franchise of "The Voice." The 19-year-old from Acre bested her three competitors in the final and will receive a record contract and a scholarship to attend music school.

On stage during the special on Saturday night, Makhoul said she had been the victim of racism by the general public during the season's filming, but that she had also received many warm reactions. "But the majority rules, right?" she said to the thousands of audience members, who responded with cheers and applause.

The final was made up of two rounds: The first included singing by the four contenders: Rudy Beinsin, Dana Tzelakh, Ofir Ben Shitrit, and Makhoul, as well as a round of duets with the contenders' mentors, who were, respectively, Shlomi Brakha and Yuval Banay, Sarit Hadad, Aviv Geffen, and Shlomi Shabat. At the end of the round, two contestants were eliminated.

In round two Makhoul and Ben Shitrit faced off for the prize. Makhoul preformed Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" while Ben Shitrit sang Ishfiut Zmanit's "Hakaitz Haakharon" ("The Last Summer").

"Thank you for listening, believing, taking part, and putting the music first," Makhoul thanked the viewers after her victory was announced.