'I'll be there' 'I'll be there'

Mariah Carey ‘moved’ to be in Israel

Top pop diva says she ‘waited years’ to visit the Holy Land

By ToI Staff 28 June 2015, 10:05 pm 1

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Singer Mariah Carey strolls hand-in-hand with her significant other, Australian businessman James Packer, in Capri, Italy, in June 2015. (Screen capture: YouTube)

Pop diva Mariah Carey on Sunday sent a message to her Israeli fans relating her excitement at finally realizing her dream of visiting Israel.

“I waited many years to come here, and I am very moved,” she said, Army Radio reported.

Carey, 45, arrived in Israel on Saturday for a short visit with Australian businessman James Packer.

She was greeted at Ben Gurion Airport by dozens of local fans. The couple reportedly plans to visit Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and the Dead Sea.

If the visit is successful, a concert may be planned in the future, Carey’s associates related.

Mariah Carey, who has a close Israeli friend, has demonstrated her connection to Israel before. She once tweeted holiday wishes to her Jewish fans, sang Israel’s national anthem Hatikva in Adam Sandler’s 2006 film You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, and used a few words in Hebrew to an Israeli-born contestant on American Idol in 2013, describing her performance as “sababa,” or cool. (The contestant, who happened to be Shira Gavrielov, daughter of Israeli singer Mickey Gavrielov, did not win.)

Packer, who reportedly bought a house in Israel recently and has business interests here, is said to be a friend of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.