The health of William Mebarak Chadid, father of the Colombian star Shakira, again generates great concern. At 93, Mebarak is hospitalized in Barranquilla and, according to recent reports, is going through a critical state.
The news was initially announced by the Spanish journalist Jordi Martín, known for having at the time the infidelity of Gerard Piqué to Shakira and allegedly having a fairly close relationship with the Barranquilla artist.
Through his YouTube channel and in the program ‘El Gordo y La Flaca’, of Univisión, Martín delivered an alarming part:
“Shakira’s dad would have worsened. He is very delicate … the word that puts me in the message is: ‘Eye that the father is very delicate.’ Read: Maluma made a proposal to Shakira to transform his life and that of his children
Although the family has not issued an official statement, several international media, such as TV Azteca and sale, ensure that the situation has led Shakira to pause in their newly initiated world tour women no longer cry, to move to Colombia and be with their father.
This tour, with which the Barranquillera had triumphantly returned to the stage after seven years, had its recent start at the Coachella 2025 festival, where Shakira shared a platform with Bizarrap in a performance that moved thousands of fans.
What disease does Shakira’s dad have?
It is not the first time that William Mebarak’s health generates concern. In 2022, he suffered a serious fall in his home that caused him a head trauma, for which he had to undergo emergency surgery to extract clots in his brain.
Subsequently, he was hospitalized again for pneumonia that further complicated his recovery.
In 2023, Mebarak was intervened again, this time to place an Hakim type valve due to a diagnosis of hydrocephalus, a condition that causes the accumulation of fluid in the brain and that can become deadly if it is not treated. The intervention was carried out in a Cartagena clinic.
In 2024, Shakira revealed to his followers that his father had been admitted to the Ibero -American Clinic of Barranquilla to continue receiving medical treatment. At all times, the singer has publicly shown her unconditional support to her father, sharing videos where she was seen accompanying him in rehabilitation therapies. Read: Why Karol G did not sing with Shakira in Medellín: they reveal the reason
“Your strength is mine,” the artist wrote in a publication that deeply moved her fans worldwide.
William Mebarak has been much more than the father of the Colombian superstar. Of Lebanese ancestry and journalist and writer profession, he has closely accompanied Shakira’s life and career, being a central figure both personally and professionally.
Fruit of his marriage to Nidia Ripoll, Shakira is her only daughter in common. However, Mebarak had nine children of an earlier relationship: Robin, Moses, Tonino – who is also Shakira’s current manager – Alberto, José, Lucila, Ana and Edward. Read: Journalist who “rejected” Shakira in the beginning defends himself: “I had no time”
The family has always been a refuge for the artist, especially in recent years marked by personal and professional changes. Shakira’s closeness with his father is well known and has been mentioned in multiple interviews as a fundamental source of his inner strength.
