Shakira responds to questions about Kurdi brothers at UN

NEW YORK — International singer and pop star Shakira has spoken publicly about the deaths of two Kurdish children—Alan and Gaylan Kurdi—whose deaths caught the world’s attention when a photo of Alan’s lifeless body on a Turkish beach became emblematic of the ongoing EU refugee crisis.

Shakira was at the UN Headquarters in New York holding a press conference when she responded to two questions asked by journalists.

“The image of that little boy washed up on the shore is a tragic one, and one that we shouldn’t ignore and shouldn’t not forget, and it should humanize the plight of the refugees, because children should not pay the price of war, because all of us have the responsibility today and we can not escape it. Not the leaders of the world and not us as civil society. We need to come together and we need to demand a just exit to this humanitarian crisis, because the refugees deserve to have a home, and I know that there’s a lot of racism underneath it all,” she said.

Shakira started her career in 1991. She has millions of fans all over the world.

“I only hope that sometime soon we can have a world where human needs and human rights rise above flags, and borders, and numbers, and selfishness and racism. Because I am sure it is not an easy problem to resolve, but I am also sure that nations coming together could find an intelligent way, an intelligent solution to this issue, this urgent issue, in the name of Alan Kurdi and Gaylan Kurdi, those two boys who lost their lives,” Shakira continued.