PARIS, France (CelebrityAccess) — A French Muslim rapper announced on Friday that he was canceling a pair of shows at the Bataclan concert hall in Paris over security concerns.
Médine, a French-Algerian performer, had been scheduled to perform on Oct. 19 and Oct. 20, but the bookings sparked protests from France’s far-right who accused Médine of intentionally stoking racial divisions with the concerts.
The Bataclan was infamously was targeted in part of a terror attack by Muslim extremists in 2015 that left more than 130 people dead, including 90 at the Bataclan.
According to Reuters, both Médine and the Bataclan had resisted calls to cancel the shows but on Friday, the concert hall released a statement which said that “out of respect for the victims” the concert would take place at another venue.
In a separate statement, Médine blamed elements in the far right for sparking the outcry but confirmed the show at the Bataclan had been moved.
“Out of respect for these families and to guarantee the security of my public, these concerts cannot go ahead,” he said.
The show will now take place at the Paris Zenith on February 9th.
