LONDON: U2 singer Bono has called for Israel to be “released from (Prime Minister) Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right fundamentalists.”
The Irish musician made the statement at the Ivor Novello Awards, and called on Hamas to release all remaining hostages still being held in Gaza.
At the ceremony in London on Thursday, the singer said: “Peace creates possibilities in the most intractable situations. Lord knows there’s a few of them out there right now.
“Hamas: Release the hostages. Stop the war. Israel: Be released from Benjamin Netanyahu and far-right fundamentalists that twist your sacred texts. All of you protect our aid workers, they’re the best of us.”
U2, who were at the ceremony to be honored with an Academy Fellowship, then performed their song “Bloody Sunday,” which references the massacre of peaceful protesters by British troops in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, in 1972.
It is the first time that Bono, who received the Peace Summit Award at the 2008 Nobel Peace Laureates Summit, has spoken publicly about Netanyahu since the outbreak of the Gaza war in October 2023.
His words coincided with criticism of the prime minister by a number of Western leaders over Israel’s approach to the war, with international bodies warning that Gaza faces famine following an 11-week blockade on aid entering the Palestinian enclave.
ARAB News
