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Radiohead musician Thom Yorke has called Benjamin Netanyahu an “extremist” who “need to be stopped” after being criticised for his silence on the subject.
Yorke issued a lengthy eight-page statement on the war in Gaza, in which he also decried Hamas for “choosing to hide behind the suffering of its people”.
His comments arrive months after Yorke walked offstage when he was heckled by a pro-Palestine protester during a solo show in Melbourne.
Footage filmed by a member of the audience in October 2024 showed a man in the crowd yelling at Yorke about the “Israeli genocide of Gaza” and the death toll, half of whom he said “were children”.
Yorke could be seen standing and listening before removing his guitar and leaving the stage. He returned shortly after the incident to play Radiohead’s 1997 song “Karma Police.”
The musician, who has also come under scrutiny in the past over his decision to continue performing in Israel, has now shared a statement on the incident.
Addressing being heckled, he said the concert “didn’t really seem like the best moment to discuss the unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza”.
Yorke added that, once the show had ended, he” 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”.
Yorke wrote: “That silence, my attempt to show respect for all those who are suffering and those who have died, and to not trivialise 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.”
The musician said his music was “evidence” that he “could not possibly support any form of extremism or dehumanisation of others”, before adding: “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“Their excuse of self-defence has long since worn thin and has been replaced by a transparent desire to take control of Gaza and the West Bank permanently.”
The remainder of his statement is below:
“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 …
“At the same time the unquestioning Free Palestine refrain that surrounds us all does not answer the simple question of why the hostages have still not all been returned? For what possible reason?
“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.”
Yorke shared the statement on Instagram with the caption: “For those who need to know.. let me fill in the blanks.”
The band’s history with Israel goes back to their debut single, “Creep”, which received widespread airplay on Israeli radio stations after initially failing to make an impact elsewhere.
They played Tel Aviv in 2017, in defiance of the pro-Palestine campaign by the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.
Responding to criticism from British director and BDS supporter Ken Loach, who wrote an op-ed for The Independent urging Radiohead to join the boycott, Yorke said: “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.
English (US) ·