Famous pop singer Celine Dion announced on Thursday her planned performances in Israel has been canceled due to medical concerns she is currently facing.
Dion's arrival to Israel which has been postponed during the COVID pandemic was scheduled for May 31, 2023.
Celine Dion's message to her fans
"We regretfully have to announce that Celine Dion will cancel her planned performances in 2023, including her show in Israel due to a health condition preventing her from performing," Dion's production crew in Israel said in a statement.
"Dion has decided to reschedule her performances planned in Europe to 2024, with her management saying she will unfortunately not reschedule her performance in Israel and seven other countries including Cyrus, Malta, Greece, Romania, France, Italy, and Switzerland," the statement said.
"I'm sorry it's taken me so long to reach out to you," Dion said in a video she posted on her Instagram account. "I miss you all so much and I can't wait to be on stage talking to you in person. As you know I've always been an open book, and I wasn't ready to say anything before, but I'm ready now.
"I've been dealing with problems with my health for a long time and it's been really difficult for me to face these challenges and to talk about everything that I've been going through. Recently I've been diagnosed with a very rare neurological disorder called the 'Stiff Person Syndrome,' which affects something like one in a million people. While we're still learning about this rare condition, we now know this is what's been causing all of the spasms that I've been having."
"Unfortunately, these spasms affect every aspect of my daily life, sometimes causing difficulties when I walk, and not allowing me to use my vocal cords to sing the way I'm used to. It hurts me to tell you today this means I won't be ready to restart my tour in Europe in February," Dion explained.
"I have a great team of doctors working alongside me to help me get better, and my precious children who are supporting me, giving me hope. I'm working hard with my sports therapist every day to build back my strength and my ability to perform again, but I have to admit it's been a struggle. All I know is singing, it's what I've done all my life, and what I love to do the most. I miss you so much, I miss seeing all of you. Being on the stage and performing for you. I always give one hundred percent when I do my shows, but my condition is not allowing me to give you that right now," she said.
"For me to reach you again I have no choice but to concentrate on my health at this moment and I have hope that I'm on the road to recovery. This is my focus, and I'm doing everything that I can to recuperate," Dion said.
"I want to thank you so much for your encouraging messages of love and support on social media - this means a lot to me. Take care of yourselves, be well. I love you guys so much, and I hope I could see you guys real soon." Dion said, thanking her fans.
Dion's production team in Israel was disappointed by her decision not to reschedule her first-ever show in Israel. "It's especially disappointing after working hard to bring Dion to Israel during the last three years with the complications brought on by the COVID pandemic," it said in a statement.
"We'd like to wish her a speedy and full recovery from all of her fans in Israel, and we can't wait to have her here with us as soon as possible," the local production team said.
Dion's cancelation of the Israel show is another in a series of many, by various artists, including Justin Bieber who also cited medical problems, and the famous rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers - who canceled their show due to "a scheduling issue."