Zayn Malik's sister blames online hate mail for tour exit

Zayn Malik's sister has blamed online trolls for raising her brother's stress levels and she has urged fans to pray for the embattled singer after he left One Direction's world tour.

The British pop star has walked away from the Asian leg of the band's tour and jetted back to Britain, just days after the publication of pictures which show him partying with a woman in Thailand.

The snaps sparked a wave of criticism online, prompting Malik to deny allegations he had cheated on his singer girlfriend Perrie Edwards, and his 12-year-old sister Safaa has now taken to Instagram.com to defend the troubled star, blaming online hate mail for his health crisis.

She writes, "Don't worry guys, Zayn is going to be okay very soon. All the stress has just gotten to him because of the rumours and hatred he has heard and received. It's really hurting him, some people are just giving him to much (sic).

"People need to realise my brother is human too, stop hating him because he hasn't done anything to anybody, except for defending himself... but it isn't true. I love my brother to death, and I do not want to lose him for anything, it hurts me to see him not feeling good. Please pray for my brother, please help him because I know he will be okay... please stop sending him hate."