Thom Yorke, singer of the rock group Radiohead, said in an interview with the Sunday Times that he would not play in Israel for the moment, explaining that he wanted to distance himself from the “regime” of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
The British group will begin their first tour in seven years in early November. Its members are periodically attacked by pro-Palestinian activists, especially since they performed in 2017 in Tel Aviv, despite calls for a boycott.
Concert interrupted
Thom Yorke was interrupted in the middle of a concert a year ago in Melbourne, Australia, by a pro-Palestinian spectator who shouted: “How many dead children does it take for you to condemn the genocide in Gaza?”
The band’s guitarist Jonny Greenwood canceled two UK concerts in May, citing “credible threats” after a call for a boycott by a pro-Palestinian group.
The Sunday Times asked Thom Yorke if he would currently play in Israel. “Of course not,” he replied.
“I wouldn’t want to be 5,000 miles from the Netanyahu regime,” said the singer and songwriter, in this interview conducted before the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.
Regarding the 2017 concert, Thom Yorke explained that “at the time” he thought the concert “made sense.” He said that at the Tel Aviv hotel, “an obviously very high-ranking man” approached him to thank him. “I was very horrified that the concert was hijacked,” he said.
Jonny Greenwood ‘politely disagrees’ with Thom Yorke
Jonny Greenwood, who is married to an Israeli artist and has collaborated for ten years with Israeli musician Dudu Tassa, told the Sunday Times that he “politely disagrees” with Thom Yorke.
“The government is likely to take advantage of the boycott to say, ‘Everyone hates us, we should do exactly what we want,’ which is much more dangerous,” the guitarist said.
“The only thing I’m ashamed of is that I dragged Thom and the others into this mess, but I’m not ashamed of working with Arab and Jewish musicians. I can’t apologize for that,” added Jonny Greenwood.
Another Radiohead member, Ed O’Brien, told him that the band should have played Ramallah, in the West Bank, in addition to Tel Aviv in 2017. The group will perform 20 concerts in five European cities in November and December.
Source: BFM TV
