US rapper Macklemore has cancelled a planned October concert in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to the country’s suspected involvement in the deadly conflict in Sudan.
He said people had been calling for months to cancel concerts in solidarity with the Sudanese people and to “boycott business in the UAE because of its role in the ongoing genocide and humanitarian crisis in the region.”
The rapper was referring to the UAE’s reported support for the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), a Sudanese paramilitary group that has been fighting against the Sudanese army.
“I will not perform there until the UAE stops arms and funding the RSF,” he said in an Instagram post.
The UAE government said allegations about its involvement in the Sudanese conflict were “baseless and unfounded” and aimed at “diverting attention from the ongoing fighting and humanitarian disaster.”
“The UAE reiterates its call for an immediate ceasefire in the ongoing conflict. The warring parties must stop fighting and work towards a peaceful resolution to the conflict through dialogue,” it said in a statement.
Sudan’s UN Ambassador, Harith Idris Al Harith Mohammed, said the UAE’s financial and military support for the RSF was “the main cause of this protracted war.”
Since fighting began in April last year, thousands of people have been killed and 10 million forced to flee their homes.
The war has pushed the country into the worst hunger levels on record, according to the United Nations-certified Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC).
Atrocities have been blamed on both sides, but the RSF has also been accused of carrying out genocide against non-Arab residents in parts of western Darfur that it mainly controls – a charge it denies and blames on local militias.
Numerous talks aimed at ending the 16-month war have so far failed, with rival factions still vying for control of the country, worsening the humanitarian crisis.
“The situation in Sudan is urgent, horrifying and has received little global attention,” Macklemore said in a statement Saturday about his decision.
He said he was also inspired by the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, noting that the plight of the Palestinians has “awakened the world.”
The Grammy Award-winning artist’s latest song, “Hind’s Hall,” pays tribute to a young girl who was murdered in Gaza.
He has released music in the past that has addressed social issues such as drug addiction, consumerism and gay rights.
He said he was not critical of other stars who perform in the UAE, which frequently hosts big international artists and sporting events.
“But to my peers who will be playing in Dubai, I ask: what could we achieve if we used our platform to mobilize collective liberation?” he added.