Singer Bebe Rexha has said she was threatened and “mentally abused” by an airport worker for being Albanian.
The 34-year-old posted a tearful video on Instagram, with the caption: “I’ve been threatened because I thought the security agent was Albanian.
“I spoke to him in Albanian asking where to get my ticket and now he is banning me from the flight.”
It’s not known whether the US-born star, whose family has Albanian heritage, was allowed to board the flight from Munich airport.
In Saturday’s post to her 12 million followers, she said she thought the incident was a “hate crime” due to her ethnicity.
Rexha claimed the male staff member refused to give his name and “continued to mentally abuse me” and that female staff didn’t intervene.
The star, who’s worked with the likes of Rita Ora and Louis Tomlinson and had a UK number one with David Guetta with I’m Good (Blue), said she believed the man works for a company that provides services for Lufthansa.
The German airline said it was trying to “understand the situation” and does not “tolerate discriminatory behaviour of any kind”.
“We reached out to Bebe Rexha and are in direct contact with her to understand the situation,” said a spokesperson.
“As an international airline, we connect people and countries around the globe. Our guests and employees come from all over the world,” the spokesperson added.
“Diversity and equal opportunity are core values for our company and our corporate culture.
“We do not tolerate any discriminatory behaviour of any kind.”
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Rexha later confirmed she had been contacted by Lufthansa and urged them to fully investigate.
As well as her own hits – which include four top 10 singles in the UK – the singer has written for stars including Selena Gomez and Eminem.
Source Agencies
