Miri Regev
Miri RegevOhad Zweigenberg/Flash 90

Culture and Sport Minister Miri Regev (Likud) on Sunday evening urged New Zealand pop star Lorde to reconsider her decision to cancel her concert in Tel Aviv, after Israeli concert organizers announced the cancellation, following pressure on Lorde from pro-Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) activists.

"I hope she reconsiders her decision. Lorde, I expect you to be a ‘pure heroine’ like the title of your first album, a pure heroine of culture, devoid of any foreign political, not to mention delusional, considerations,” said Regev.

Lorde had been scheduled to perform in Israel in June. On Friday, however, she said she is considering canceling the show following criticism from pro-Palestinian Arab fans in her native New Zealand.

New Zealanders Nadia Abu-Shanab and Justine Sachs, a Palestinian Arab and a Jew, wrote an open letter on the website The Spinoff saying that Lorde’s scheduled performance in Israel “sends the wrong message.”

“Playing in Tel Aviv will be seen as giving support to the policies of the Israeli government, even if you make no comment on the political situation,” they claimed.

In response, the 21-year-old singer wrote on Twitter that she is now “considering all options.”

"Noted! Been speaking with many people about this and considering all options. Thank you for educating me. I am learning all the time too,” she wrote.

Foreign artists who seek to perform in Israel are under constant pressure from BDS activists to cancel their shows.

Much of this pressure comes from former Pink Floyd frontman and notorious anti-Israel activist Roger Waters.

His list of targets includes Jon Bon Jovi, Alan Parsons, the Rolling Stones, Neil Young, Radiohead and actress Scarlett Johansson.

In addition, the former Pink Floyd frontman has in the past compared Israel to Nazi Germany, saying in an interview, “The situation in Israel/Palestine, with the occupation, the ethnic cleansing and the systematic racist apartheid Israeli regime is unacceptable.”

He previously released a giant balloon pig bearing the Star of David during a concert in Belgium. Concert-goers said the Jewish star was among several symbols representing various corporations and fascist movements.

Most recently, Waters clashed with Australian rocker Nick Cave, who resisted boycott calls and went ahead with his Israel show and even criticized the BDS movement.

Waters later fired back and told Cave that the boycott of Israel “isn’t about music – it’s about human rights.”

In addition to Cave, Radiohead played in Tel Aviv this past July, defying boycott calls. Popular rhythm and blues artist Alicia Keys and pop duo Pet Shop Boys are among the artists who have also performed in Israel in recent years, amid calls to cancel their show.

At the same time, several popular musicians, such as Elvis Costello and Lauryn Hill, have cancelled past concerts in Israel following pressure from BDS.