Sunni and Cher: Queen of Pop petitions Saudi crown prince

Sunni and Cher: Queen of Pop petitions Saudi crown prince
Pop superstar Cher has called on Saudi Arabia's Mohammed bin Salman to release Prince Turki, a leading Saudi diplomat.
2 min read
01 April, 2018
Cher has called on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to release Prince Turki [AFP]
Pop idol Cher has called on Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to release a jailed prince who is friends with the singer's son.

Cher tweeted her support for Prince Turki bin Abdullah, who has been detained on the orders of Mohammed bin Salman on allegations of corruption.

She said that she is worried about her son's "good friend Prince Turki bin Abdullah" and asked Mohammed bin Salman to "be kind" to him and "let him go free".

The singer added that her son Elijah was heartbroken about his imprisonment, using an emoji, and said she "would speak 4 him".

Prince Turki was detained along with hundreds of other royals and business elite last year, in an alleged crackdown on corruption.

Although most of the detained were released after they handed over substantial amounts in cash, Prince Turki remains behind bars.

The former Riyadh governor has protested his innocence and reportedly refused to pay for his freedom.

Prince Turki's aide Major General Ali al-Qahtani was one of those detained and who died, while imprisoned at the Ritz Carlton hotel. His body allegedly showed signs of torture.

Cher also called for President Donald Trump to not go ahead with his plans to pull US troops out of Syria.

In the emotional plea, she said that the troop withdrawal would create "a vacuum" and said he would be "leaving helpless [Syrian] women [and] children  [to be] gassed, bombed, [and] tortured by Putin [and] Bashar al-Assad".

She added that the US departure would also allow "the Turks" to "kill" Washington allies "the Kurds".