Bruno Mars’ Saturday night show in Tel Aviv has been canceled, Live Nation Israel has announced. Word of the cancellation comes as Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced Saturday that the country is “at war” following a surprise attack by Hamas militants that led to the deaths of over 200 Israelis and injured hundreds more.
“Dear customers, Bruno Mars concert scheduled to take place tonight is cancelled,” a translated Instagram statement from Live Nation Israel read on Friday. “All ticket purchases to the show will receive an automatic refund to the credit card through which the purchase was made. We strengthen the residents of Israel, IDF fighters and the security forces in these difficult moments.”
Mars first performed in the country to days earlier and as a video statement from Netanyahu noted a “murderous surprise attack” from the Palestinian militant group amid the ongoing Israel-Palestinian conflict, per CNN.
On Sunday, Mars’ Lusail International Circuit performance for Qatar’s Formula One post-race concert was also called off, as the musician has been replaced by DJ Snake. The venue announced the news on Twitter, citing “circumstances outside of our control.”
The Silk Sonic frontman is next scheduled to perform in Florida in December. As previously reported, the Israel military says it was attacked on land, sea and air, while approximately 2,200 rockets were fired from the Gaza Strip and headed over Israel, CNN reports. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) also shared, per CNN, that Hamas took “hostages and prisoners of war,” while Lt. Colonel Richard Hecht revealed that soldiers were “fighting on the ground as we speak” over the weekend.
Source report that 232 Palestinians have also been killed and 1,600 wounded in a counterattack on the Gaza Strip, citing the health ministry.
For decades, Israel and Palestine have been fighting for the right to claim Jerusalem as their capital. Israel governs the city, while Palestinians look to control East Jerusalem, which consists of the West Bank and Gaza, as many reside there after being displaced as a result of Arab-Israeli conflicts that began around Israel’s formation.
U.S. President Joe Biden, who spoke with Prime Minister Netanyahu, shared a Saturday statement about the “horrific and ongoing attacks in Israel,” writing that the U.S. “unequivocally condemns this appalling assault against Israel by Hamas terrorists from Gaza” and is ready to “offer all appropriate means of support.”
“Terrorism is never justified,” Biden wrote. “Israel has a right to defend itself and its people. The United States warns against any other party hostile to Israel seeking advantage in this situation. My Administration’s support for Israel’s security is rock solid and unwavering.”
President Biden continued: “Jill and I are keeping in our prayers all of the families who have been hurt by this violence, We are heartbroken by the lives that have been tragically cut short and hope for a swift recovery for all those who have been wounded.”
Source Mbare Times
