Rihanna has flown into Senegal to attend an education conference in the African nation amid calls from religious leaders to ban the singer.
The heads of an association of Islamic religious groups in the African state demanded officials bar her from attending the Global Partnership for Education's financing conference in Senegal's capital, Dakar, on Friday (02Feb18) as they claimed she was a member of the Illuminati, a mythical group conspiracy theorists claim control world affairs.
However, according to editors at the WE Senegal website, the Umbrella singer arrived in the country on Thursday (01Feb18). She reportedly travelled on the same South African Airways flight as World Bank President Jim Yong Kim.
The Bajan popstar's visit has caused anger among the leaders of No to Freemasonry and Homosexuality, an association of Islamic associations who demanded her visit be cancelled.
Cheikh Oumar Diagne, a spokesperson for the group, told pan-African magazine Jeune Afrique that he believed Rihanna was using the education conference as a cover to attend a secret meeting, saying, "Rihanna does not hide it: she is part of the Illuminati, which is a branch of Freemasonry."
Rihanna, who funds schools in impoverished countries via her Clara Lionel Foundation, is an ambassador for the Global Partnership for Education, which is headed by Australia's former Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Their conference is hosted by France's President Emmanuel Macron and Senegal leader Macky Sall.
Ahead of the event, Rihanna tweeted world leaders asking them to commit to funding education in the world's poorest nations, including British leader Theresa May and Australia's Malcolm Turnbull.
She aims to help the educational organisation raise $3.1 billion (£2.5 billion) to fund schooling around the world.
