March 9, 2006

Associated Press

SYDNEY, Australia — U2 has postponed the final 10 dates of their "Vertigo" world tour because of the illness of a family member.

In a statement, the tour promoter said the decision was unavoidable "due to the illness of an immediate family member of one of the band."

"Any fan of U2 will realize that this decision has not been taken lightly," said promoter Arthur Fogel. "We will announce further details as soon as we have them."

The statement, released Wednesday, gave no details of the nature of the illness or the band member whose relative was sick. The promoter could not immediately be contacted for further comment.

U2 was scheduled to play Auckland, New Zealand, March 17-18 before kicking off the Australian leg of their world tour in Brisbane on March 21, followed by concerts in Melbourne, Adelaide and Sydney.

The band was scheduled to play in Yokohama, Japan, on April 4 and in Honolulu on April 8.

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