Turkish authorities have canceled a concert by Enrico Macias, the French-Algerian Jewish singer who has performed in the country for decades, citing planned protests over his support for Israel.
The Istanbul governor’s office announced the cancellation on Wednesday of Macias’s Friday evening concert in the city’s Şişli district, citing “intense calls for protests” as the driving factor behind the decision.
Authorities said allowing the event to proceed could thrust protesters into an “unjust legal position” and generate grievances, prompting them to ban both the concert and any surrounding protests.
The decision to cancel the concert also reflects the rhetoric of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, which has drawn accusations of antisemitism from Israel and U.S. officials and Jewish groups. In recent months, Erdoğan has called Israel a “terror state,” and described Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as “a vampire who feeds on blood.”
A longtime supporter of Israel who has at times signaled that he could move there, Macias, 86, expressed his dismay at the decision.
“I have had the privilege of singing in Istanbul and Izmir for more than 60 years, cities I particularly cherish for their extraordinary audiences,” he told AFP. “I am deeply surprised and saddened not to be able to meet my public, with whom I have always shared values of peace and fraternity.”
Born Gaston Ghrenassia in Constantine, Algeria, in 1938, Macias fled to France in 1961 during the Algerian War of Independence, following the assassination of his father-in-law, a prominent musician. He adopted the stage name Enrico Macias in 1962 and went on to build a long and successful career, becoming a popular interpreter of Arab-Andalusian music with large followings both across the Middle Eastern and in the Western Francophone world. (Osama Bin Laden’s personal music collection reportedly included a Macias album.)
He was banned from some Arab countries over his advocacy of Arab-Israeli peace, which earned him an invitation to perform in Egypt as Anwar Sadat neared a peace agreement with Israel. In 1997, then Secretary General Kofi Annan awarded him the title of “messenger of peace.”
Macias is also well known for his outspoken support for Israel, where he has performed dozens of times. He has appeared at solidarity concerts, including events benefiting Israeli soldiers, and has spoken openly of his Zionism in interviews. In 2020, he said he would move to Israel if Marine Le Pen, a right-wing politician, became president of France. Last year, he led singing in Hebrew at a Paris rally on behalf of the hostages in Gaza.
Through it all, his ties to Turkey have been especially strong. Many of his songs were adapted into Turkish and covered by well known local artists. He performed duets and live concerts in the country, leading to decades of cross-cultural influence.
But his activism has proved controversial amid the broader deterioration in Turkey’s relations with Israel. Ankara has sharply criticized Israel’s military actions in Gaza, using terms such as “genocide” and suspending trade in reaction to the escalating conflict.
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