Ed Sheeran cries as he addresses Palestine row on stage

Ed Sheeran cried on stage and declared he was "so sorry" as he addressed the row over Palestine which led to Macklemore being removed from his tour.

The Shape Of You hitmaker has attracted criticism after his support act was dropped from the Loop live shows after declaring his support for the people of Palestine, and at his first concert back since the row broke out, Ed kicked off the evening with a speech for Saturday's (19.09.26) crowd in Philadelphia.

He said: “This is not usually how I would open the show, but before I play some songs tonight, I hope it’s okay if I say a few words.

“I’m used to my music being criticised … This week the criticism was about something much more important ... I am making mistakes and I am so so sorry.”

“I don’t want to disappoint fans, and I’ve never wanted to be an activist musician, but this has put me in the middle of an important, compassionate argument about freedom of speech and the most complex political issue on the planet.

“But this is a humanitarian issue, and I cannot hide how I feel about it any more.

“What happened in Israel, and at the Nova music festival on October 7, it was horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain.

"What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate. My heart has been broken by the scale of devastation, loss of civilians’ lives. Children’s lives.

At this systemic injustice, (what) we’re seeing unfolding in the West Bank cannot be overlooked.”

Making a rollercoaster motion with his hand, Ed noted the last week had been "like this".

The 35-year-old singer had previously insisted the decision to cut Macklemore from the tour hadn't been his, and in his speech he appeared to lay the blame at wealthy venue owners.

He said: “I am deeply worried about the idea that venues pre-approved content forms... It should never happen in the free world."

He then grew tearful as he said: "I am already speaking to people across the spectrum to work out how to make a contribution that helps victims”.

Ed's backing band, Beoga, and all his opening acts pulled out of the Loop tour in the wake of Macklemore's removal.