Shakira: 'Arizona law is inhuman'

Shakira has expressed her shock at a new immigration law passed in Arizona this week.

The singer, who organised a meeting with the mayor of Phoenix and other government officials to discuss the legislation at City Hall, insisted that the new law "violates [the] civil and human rights" of Hispanic people living in Arizona.

Speaking to The AP, the 33-year-old: "I heard about it on the news and I thought, 'Wow'. It is unjust and it's inhuman, and it violates the civil and human rights of the Latino community.

"It goes against all human dignity, against the principles of most Americans I know."

She added: "I'm not an expert on the Constitution but I know the Constitution exists for a reason. It exists to protect human beings, to protect the rights of people living in a nation with or without documents. We're talking about human beings here."

The immigration law, which has been called the toughest in America, makes it a crime for an immigrant to be in the state without legal proof of residency.