Activists urge Mariah Carey to cancel Saudi concert

Jan. 29 (UPI) -- Activists are urging Mariah Carey to cancel her upcoming concert in Saudi Arabia over the country's alleged human rights abuses.

The American singer is set to perform alongside DJ test and Sean Paul on Thursday at King Abdullah Economic City, north of Jeddah. She would be the highest-profile Western female entertainer to perform in the country since it began to loosen industry restrictions a few years ago, Bloomberg reported.

Code Pink, a women-led peace and human rights activist organization, is urging the singer to back out, saying her involvement with the Middle East country will only help Saudi Arabia "artwash" its war crimes, specifically its war in Yemen and its repression of women, journalists and government dissidents.

"Why is Mariah Carey planning a January 31, 2019 concert in Saudi Arabia? Doesn't she know Saudi Arabia is one of the most repressive and murderous regimes on the planet?" Code Pink asked in a statement on its website.

The appeal to Carey follows several high-profile allegations of abuse committed by the Saudi regime, including the arrest and torture of Loujain al-Hathloul in a crackdown against feminists in May 2018 and the regime's purported murder of Washington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi in October.

Alia al-Hathloul, the sister of Loujain, tweeted to Carey, reminding her to thank her sister during the concert as it is because of her fight for women's rights the Western singer is allowed to perform in the country.

Code Pink has started a petition with over 2,500 signatures urging the singer to "be a hero for Saudi women and the people of Yemen" by canceling her concert and to speak out against the alleged crimes of Saudi Arabia.