Shakira's parents airlifted to Miami to join grandchildren at new home after split from Gerard Pique
MIAMI, FLORIDA: Shakira has reportedly been finally reunited with her whole family after shifting to the US earlier with just with her two sons. Reports have said that now her parents – William Mebarak, 91, and Nidia Ripoli – have also moved from Barcelona to be with their daughter and their grandchildren.
Previously, the father and mother of the ‘Queen of Latin Music’ did not accompany her to the US due to their health. Mebarak faced health struggles after he suffered an accident in her home back in May last year.
But now it has been said that they were transported via an air ambulance. Local media reports also noted that a doctor accompanied the pair as they flew from Catalunya to the US.
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‘Milan and Sasha have lived a very difficult year’
This comes as the 46-year-old singer released a statement on Instagram, calling for privacy for her children – Milan and Sasha. She penned, “Dear friends, journalists, and media. At this time of changes in my life as a public figure, it is understandable that there is a permanent curiosity on the part of the press about me and my family.
“However, my children, Milan and Sasha have lived a very difficult year, suffering an incessant siege and relentless persecution by paparazzi and various media in Barcelona. Now that they are beginning a new stage in their lives, I strongly ask the media on behalf of my children to please respect their right to privacy.”
She requested the media to “refrain from following them to the exit or entrance of the school, waiting for them at the door of our house, or chasing them to their extra-curricular and recreational activities, as has happened every day in Barcelona, in order to obtain photographic or better captures.”
‘It is about the health and physical and emotional integrity of two minors’
“I trust that journalists and photographers are sensitive to the situation Milan and Sasha are facing and can behave in the most humane way possible with them, taking into account that it is about the health and physical and emotional integrity of two minors under 8 and 10 years old who just want to be able to go out and attend school feeling safe and having the peace of mind of not being persecuted or subjected to the constant scrutiny of the cameras,” the ‘Waka Waka’ singer wrote.
She added that her plea was not as a famous person “but as a mother who wants to protect and take care of the psychological and emotional well-being of her children so that they can live a healthy and happy life, as every child deserves. Thanks for your understanding and support.”
‘Thanks to everyone who encouraged me’
Shakira decided to leave Spain for the US after her much-talked-about breakup with former Barcelona defender Gerard Pique. Earlier this month, she said on Instagram, “I settled in Barcelona to give my children stability, the same that we are now looking for in another corner of the world next to family, friends, and the sea. Today we begin a new chapter in the search for your happiness. Thanks to everyone who surfed so many waves with me there in Barcelona, the city where I learned that friendship is undoubtedly longer than love.”
“Thanks to everyone who encouraged me there, dried my tears, inspired me, and made me grow. Thanks to my Spanish audience who have always covered me with their love and loyalty. For you only see you later and as my father said so many times, see you in the curves!” the ‘Hips Don't Lie’ singer concluded.