Macklemore claims he's been removed from Ed Sheeran tour over 'Free Palestine' comment

US rapper Macklemore has claimed he's been removed as Ed Sheeran's tour opener after saying "Free Palestine" during a gig.

During a Sheeran concert at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey last week, Macklemore, 43, whose real name is Benjamin Haggerty, told crowds he wanted people in Gaza and the West Bank to know they had not been forgotten.

His comments prompted backlash, including from singer Pink, who reposted a message criticising his comments to her Instagram page.

A petition was also launched calling for Macklemore to be removed from the remainder of Sheeran's tour.

In a lengthy post on Monday, Macklemore confirmed Sheeran and his team had decided to remove him from the tour

Macklemore said he, Sheeran and Pink were not victims.

"We have careers, money, opportunities, safety and audiences around the world. Whatever consequences any of us face for what we say, we get to go home to our families," Macklemore wrote.

"The victims are the Palestinian people. The men, women and children who have been killed, starved, displaced and forced to live through unimaginable violence.

"More than 20,000 children have been killed in Gaza alone. People are being killed today, and people will be killed tomorrow. I want to make sure that as I tell this story, we don't lose sight of that."

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Macklemore went on to claim Robert Kraft, whose Kraft Group owns the Gillette Stadium they were due to play in, had contacted Sheeran and told him they would not be able to play unless he was removed from the tour.

He added that Sheeran was "in a f***** up position".

Macklemore said: "He told me that the words 'Free Palestine' and the image of the Palestinian flag were hurtful to a lot of people he spoke with.

"I told him that if those words were more offensive than tens of thousands of Palestinian children being killed by Israel, then there was a fundamental disconnect between where those people stood and where I stood.

"But he couldn't get past his public facing, 'I don't take sides'."

In a statement provided to NBC News, Sky News' US partner network, Mr Kraft said the decision was reached after comments made by Macklemore at the tour's New Jersey shows and "a broader history of antisemitic rhetoric and imagery that we believe has been deeply offensive and hurtful to the Jewish community".

He added that Gillette Stadium seeks to create a "welcoming environment for all guests".

"I would welcome the opportunity to sit down with Macklemore and discuss the facts, because ultimately our goal is the same - peace for all people, an end to suffering, and an end to all hate.

"This decision is not about diminishing the suffering of innocent Palestinians or denying anyone the right to advocate on their behalf. Their pain and loss are real."

Macklemore's advocacy "should not come at the expense of the Jewish community or obscure the responsibility of Hamas," Kraft said.

Macklemore was supported by Irish rap trio Kneecap and singer Paloma Faith on Instagram.

Since her original repost, Pink said in a post "Palestinians deserve a future that honours their humanity and their aspirations".

She added: "Last weekend he stood in front of a stadium full of music-loving families, with violent images from a war on the screens, dedicated a song to the movement of his choice, and then took the mic to tell all of the Jews in the stadium that it wasn't about them.

"You don't get to decide that for us. That's what prompted my repost."

Pink went on to say she does not speak for Israel or for any government.

Representatives for Sheeran have been contacted for comment.

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