Hyderabad, Sept. 20 -- British singer Ed Sheeran described the situation in Gaza as "catastrophic, unjustifiable and disproportionate" amid the controversy over Macklemore's removal from his US tour.

He made the remarks during a Philadelphia concert on Saturday, September 19, while speaking about freedom of speech and the role of venues in deciding what performers can say.

"I've never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important and passionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet," Sheeran said.

He described the October 7, 2023 attack in Israel and at the Nova Music Festival as "horrific" and said it had compounded centuries of Jewish pain.

"What is...