Israeli Visit...

[Haaretz.com Report]

Sharon meets with pop singer Whitney Houston in Jerusalem

By Michal Palti, Haaretz Correspondent and Haaretz Service

Prime Minister Ariel Sharon met Tuesday with American pop singer Whitney Houston and her husband Bobby Brown at his Jerusalem residence.

Sharon welcomed Houston and Brown to Jerusalem, which he called "the capital of the
Jewish people for 3,000 years."

Noting that this was their first trip to Israel, Sharon hoped it would be the first of many, to which Houston replied, "Yes."

When Sharon asked her how she felt in Israel, Houston said, "It's home, it's home."

Houston arrived Sunday for her stay with the Black Hebrews, a group of nearly 2,000 black Americans who followed a Chicago bus driver to Israel decades ago and believe they are descendants of one of the lost tribes of Israelites.

Their religious customs include a vegan diet and polygamy. Houston spent her first day at their compound in the desert town of Dimona receiving massages, relaxing, and meeting with the Black Hebrews, who call each other saints.

"She is loving it," said Patricia Houston, the singer's spokeswoman and sister-in-law. "She is a spiritual woman and wanted to come here and touch the land and be around the saints of Dimona." Whitney Houston is accompanied by a group of relatives, including her husband, singer Bobby Brown, and their daughter.

Patricia Houston said the singer had planned to come earlier, but her trip had been postponed a number of times because of security concerns.

NEWSFILE: 27 MAY 2003