BDS 'wins' as Kiwi pop-star Lorde cancels Tel Aviv show following boycott appeals

New Zealand pop star Lorde has cancelled a show in Israel scheduled for next summer in response to Israel's human rights record and occupation of Palestinian territory.

The musician said in a statement on Sunday that she had made the decision after receiving appeals by activists to cancel her June 2018 concert in Tel Aviv.

"I think this is the right decision at this time is to cancel the show," the 21-year-old said.

"I'm not too proud to admit I didn't make the right call on this one," she said of the initial decision earlier this month to perform in Israel.

She added that the decision was made after "receiving an overwhelming number of messages and letters".

The move comes after US President Donald Trump's controversial recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital, which has sparked near-daily protests and widespread international condemnation.

On Sunday, Israel's minister of culture called on the singer to reconsider her cancellation.

"Lorde, I expect you to be a 'pure heroine' like the title of your first album. A pure heroine of culture, void of any foreign political considerations, not to mention delusional ones," Miri Regev said.

Lorde joins artists including Lauryn Hill, Roger Waters and Elvis Costello in boycotting Israel over its treatment of Palestinians.

The movement behind the pressure on Lorde is known as BDS - Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions - and says it is inspired by the campaign that targeted South Africa's apartheid regime and is seeking an end to Israel's occupation of the West Bank.

Israel sees BDS as a strategic threat and accuses it of anti-Semitism - a claim activists firmly deny, calling it an attempt to discredit them.

In July, BDS activists failed to get Radiohead to call off its show in Tel Aviv despite heavy pressure from artists such as Pink Floyd's Roger Waters and director Ken Loach.