Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke has issued a lengthy statement regarding his stance on the Israel-Gaza conflict.
The British rockstar has been criticised and questioned before by fans for his silence on the issue. Yorke was heckled at a solo gig in Melbourne last October, where a crowd member screamed at the singer, “How can you be silent?”. Yorke then invited the heckler up to say his piece, before leaving and then returning to the stage to play the Radiohead hit ‘Karma Police’.
@apnewsentertainment Thom Yorke left a stage mid-show in Melbourne, Australia after challenging a heckler to take his mic over comments on the Israel-Hamas conflict. #thomyorke ♬ original sound – AP Entertainment
In a long post on Instagram, Yorke addressed the Melbourne moment: “Some guy shouting at me from the dark last year when I was picking up a guitar to sing the final song alone in front of 9000 people in Melbourne didn’t really seem like the best moment to discuss the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza.
Afterwards I remained in shock that my supposed silence was somehow being taken as complicity, and I struggled to find an adequate way to respond to this and to carry on with the rest of the shows on the tour.
That silence, my attempt to show respect for all those who are suffering and those who have died, and to not trivialize it in a few words, has allowed other opportunistic groups to use intimidation and defamation to fill in the blanks, and I regret giving them this chance. This has had a heavy toll on my mental health.”
Later in the statement, Yorke criticized Israeli prime minister Benjam Netanyahu and his administration: “I think Netanyahu and his crew of extremists are totally out of control and need to be stopped, and that the international community should put all the pressure it can on them to cease. Their excuse of self-defence has long since worn thin and has been replaced by a transparent desire to take control of Gaza and the West Bank permanently.
I believe this ultra-nationalist administration has hidden itself behind a terrified & grieving people and used them to deflect any criticism, using that fear and grief to further their ultra-nationalist agenda with terrible consequences, as we see now with the horrific blockade of aid to Gaza.”
He also condemned Hamas, similarly calling out the militant movement/terror group for using Gaza’s pain to further their own agenda: “Why did Hamas choose the truly horrific acts of October 7th? The answer seems obvious, and I believe Hamas chooses too to hide behind the suffering of its people, in an equally cynical fashion for their own purposes.”
Radiohead have a long history with Israel – it was the first country to give widespread radio airplay to their debut single ‘Creep’ after it failed to generate buzz anywhere else.
In 2017, the band played a concert in Tel Aviv against the advice of the pro-Palestine BDS (Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions) movement. After BDS director Ken Loach wrote an op-ed for The Independent pleading for Radiohead to join the boycott, Yorke stood firm in his impartiality to Israel’s conflict: “Playing in a country isn’t the same as endorsing the government.
“We’ve played in Israel for over 20 years through a succession of governments, some more liberal than others. As we have in America. We don’t endorse [Israeli prime minister Benjamin] Netanyahu any more than [Donald] Trump, but we still play in America.”
Recently, Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood has had to cancel UK shows with Israeli-born rock musician Dudu Tassa due to “credible threats” to their safety. You can read more on that here.
