Cher in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (Universal Pictures)

US singer Cher, who refused to perform at Russia’s 2014 Winter Olympics this year, has tweeted her solidarity for marginalised LGBT youth in Russia, calling them “brave warriors.”

Posting on Twitter, Cher responded to Channel 4’s documentary, Hunted, which follows the Russian gangs that hunt gay men for sport. The documentary had recently aired in the US on HBO.

Cher tweeted:

Sending Love 2 Our Gay Brothers & Sisters, Being Held Hostage in Russia.Their ONLY Crime is Being True 2Themselves! They R Brave Warriors — Cher (@cher) October 21, 2014 — Cher (@cher) October 21, 2014

On boycotting the Russian Olympics this year, Cher had said: ”I can’t name names but my friend called who is a big oligarch over there, and asked me if I’d like to be an ambassador for the Olympics and open the show. I immediately said no.

“I want to know why all of this gay hate just exploded over there. He said the Russian people don’t feel the way the government does.”

Last year, the singer revealed that it was her trans son who gave her a “deeper” and more “visceral” understanding of gender and sexual politics.