DUBAI: An American pro-Israel and Jewish group has expressed its upset after US rapper Macklemore voiced support for Palestine during two performances in New Jersey. The singer, who is opening for Ed Sheeran on his Loop tour, called out, “Free Palestine” and addressed the audience on the issue on Friday and Saturday night at the MetLife Stadium “I believe that every human being walking on this earth deserves exactly the same freedom,” he said, adding that people in Gaza and the West Bank had not been forgotten. He also performed “Hind’s Hall,” his 2024 protest song about the war in Gaza and the killing of 6-year-old Hind Rajab by the Israeli military. After the shows the council issued a statement, arguing that concerts should not be used for political messaging. “This was an Ed Sheeran concert — not a political rally, not a protest, and not an activist event. “The issue is not whether Macklemore has the right to hold political views. The question is where the line should be drawn when an opening act uses a global concert platform to advance a one-sided political agenda.” Macklemore has been vocal about the conflict in Gaza for several years. The proceeds from the sale of “Hind’s Hall” went to humanitarian efforts managed by the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees. The rapper has also spoken up for Palestinian rights at his previous concerts. His latest comments received a mixed reception on social media. Neither Macklemore nor Sheeran had publicly responded to the IAC statement at the time of publication.