JERUSALEM — The teenage pop idol Justin Bieber became embroiled in a diplomatic imbroglio on Tuesday when it emerged that plans for a meeting between the singer and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel had been called off, with the sides differing over why.

Mr. Bieber, who was discovered on YouTube and is famous for hits like “Baby,” is in Israel for an outdoor concert on Thursday night.

A spokesman for Mr. Netanyahu said that his office had been approached with the idea of a meeting, and that the prime minister had been “open to that.” The prime minister’s office then suggested including children from communities in southern Israel that have been under intense rocket fire from Gaza in recent days.

“Sadly,” the spokesman said, “that proved impossible,” suggesting that Mr. Bieber’s representatives had turned down the idea of including the children.