Radiohead are a band that many had associated with progressive politics. But now it turns out they have an extraordinary following among Israeli diplomats and right-wing conservatives. From US radio host Glenn Beck and Tea Party Patriots co-founder Mark Meckler, a range of around twenty Israel lobby groups, and thirteen Israeli diplomatic missions around the world from Ireland to Colombia, these groups are united in their explicit contempt for the indigenous Palestinian people’s lives.
The Jerusalem Post described Radiohead’s Israel gig and Thom Yorke’s rejection of the Palestinian call for BDS as “the best hasbara [advocacy] Israel has received lately”. Thom Yorke has defended their decision saying that “playing in a country isn’t the same as endorsing its government”, but the Israeli government and its supporters certainly do endorse Radiohead.
Palestinian, Israeli and UK artists and activists have repeatedly pointed to the inevitable instrumentalisation of the band’s appearance in Tel Aviv by Israel and its supporters.
Below are samples of government & lobby messaging from June and July.
1. ISRAEL GOVERNMENT & DIPLOMATIC MISSIONS:
The State of Israel’s official twitter channel, Foreign Ministry:
Israel Deputy Consul US:
Israel Ambassador to South Africa:
Consul General of Israel, Boston:
Israel Ambassador to Colombia:
Diplomat, Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs:
Spokesperson Embassy of Israel, London:
Consul General of Israel in New York and settler leader:
2. ISRAEL LOBBY GROUPS
Creative Community for Peace:
Executive Director StandWithUs -#Israel:
Spokesman Jewish Agency for Israel, USA:
Former Chief of Staff to PM:
The Israel Project:
Director, The Israel Project:
Exec. Director, Stand With Us:
Political adviser. Member of the World Jewish Congress Jewish Diplomatic Corps and the World Zionist Organization Sweden.
Co-founder, Adam & Gila Milstein Foundation, Israeli-American Community Advocate
https://twitter.com/AdamMilstein/status/870757266659594240
World Jewish Congress:
Associate VP of Israel Engagement CJPIsrael,
Former Director of Speechwriting @ Mission of Israel to UN:
Head of Israel Counter-Delegitimization Unit @WorldJewishCong.,
Former Head of digital media for the Israel Defense Forces:
Stand With Us:
Israel Action Network:
3. US right and far right
Glenn Beck, radio host (US)
Fox Nation:
https://twitter.com/foxnation/status/887675226317877249
Legal Insurrection:
Communism Kills:
https://twitter.com/Communism_Kills/status/887331822513922050
President, Citizens for Self Governance,
Co-Founder and former National Coord. of Tea Party Patriots:
Thanks to PACBI for the research.
Artists for Palestine UK 
I noticed these sentiments & articles online yesterday.
The one here listing Desmond Tutu w/ “bigots” – calling him a bigot – is really astonishing & shows such a paucity of knowledge & empathy! Desmond Tutu!
I also read the article (in Newsweek online) by the singer calling herself an “Arab Jew” who has apparently toured w/ Radiohead & will be playing w/ them on the site of illegally depopulated Palestinian villages/site of a war crime. I say ‘calling’ because I wish she would stop using the word “Arab” to describe herself if she’s going to stay in the bank vault (re. Stockholm Syndrome). Mainstream US news sites carried her story w/ zero mention of the *reasons* for BDS. (As evidenced by the article I read in Newsweek that seems to have been linked to in some of the above quotes).
From looking at Jonny’s ‘Arab Jewish Israeli’ wife’s Tweets last night which appear to be very pro-zionist & anti-Palestinian (please look for yourself); I think it is safe to assume that is WHY Radiohead has ALWAYS taken this direction. (This is nothing new from them). Since various articles this week describe them as having been married since 1995 & having met several years earlier. The other reason is that an Israeli DJ made them popular by playing a song over & over when it had tanked everywhere else.
As I wrote earlier I stopped listening to them in 2006 during the merciless Israeli bombing of Lebanon after Thom Yorke posted on their website that if he were Lebanese he would just “leave” & blamed those innocent civilian men/women/children/mothers/grandmothers/grandfathers/elderly/disabled being bombed & killed in that war crime for having voted for “Hezballah”.
There was also Thom Yorke & the band’s complete silence on the suffering & Israeli State murder of Palestinians during the Second Intifada; when they were going on & on about freeing Tibet; in & outside of the context of the Free Tibet concerts they participated in then. (I sympathise w/ Tibet but that disparity was glaring. Also the often used excuse that the Tibetans are always nonviolent is not true. Tibet has had violent resisters & Palestine has always had peaceful protesters. But as usual narcissists see things in black & white cartoonish term).
Those concerts also took place a year after the 1996 Israeli bombing of the Fijian UN compound in my ancestral hometown; where innocent children/women/elderly men had fled to escape bombing. It was NOT an ‘error’ which is the usual Israeli excuse; since international reporters & other unbiased observers in human rights orgs observed the bombing continuing AFTER the Israeli military had been informed. That is when the photo of the headless baby went round the world (& of course was not shown by US news companies).
That was not the only time the State of Israel has bombed UN compounds/ambulances/hospitals/schools/roads/bridges/airports. Yet Mr.Yorke thought people should be able to easily FLEE during THAT. When Lebanese civilians were bombed again in 2006. “Leave”.
Since that 2006 incident I can no longer hear their music or listen to Thom Yorke’s pretentious narcissistic opinions. The only surprising thing to me about this recent zionist colonialist orientalist stance from Thom Yorke & Radiohead is how few of their long time fans seemed to have noticed this about them before. As if his comments on Lebanon/Lebanese in 2006 were acceptable. We Lebanese are one w/ Palestinians. They are our cousins & we have been related along w/ indigenous Oriental Jews since the root of time & prehistory. We need a ONE STATE SOLUTION in Palestine that is democratic & open to all. It’s a tragedy that those who refer to themselves as “Arab Jews” are throwing dirt on the hopes & wishes of their grandparents & more likely greatgrandparents. Those elderly Oriental Mizrahi Jews now passed who lived side by side w/ their Christian & Muslim Palestinian neighbours & told a friend of mine from Nazareth that they LOATHED the “Occupation”/”Occupiers”. Apparently many of the younger generation of ‘Arab Jews’ in Israel have been brainwashed by their extremely biased educational system to loathe themselves & the feelings of their own near ancestors.
There is a reason that when Lebanese Jews want to go to school or start a business etc. outside of Lebanon (w/ its electricity & trash collection & other infrastructure difficulties) they very rarely go to Israel & prefer to live in London/Paris/Berlin/New York/LA/Sao Paolo etc. Please think about that.
Faith Hope Love
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I am intrigued and would very much like to hear more as I have been a huge Radiohead fan for ages and now can’t listen to them.
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Believe me SR I feel the same! I grew up in the States in a music industry family in basically a house like a record shop (in the cellar) filled w/ thousands of records & our living spaces above. My dad is listed in The Arab American Institute’s list of ‘famous…’ (lol to some) ‘…Arab Americans’ for his work in that. My eldest brother was an LA recording studio engineer & producer & my other brother a bass player in NYC. I am an artist/designer & was part of the downtown NYC 1980s art/music scene… & also uptown/downtown graffiti/street art.
Because of this I REALLY loved a lot of what Radiohead brought to the table. Not since the Beatles had anyone synthesised the music of others into things so clever & beautiful & interesting. (I’m talking about from 1995/98 on when they just got more & more interesting – until the mid 00s). And they were on Parlaphone like the Beatles also.
The sympathy for Tibetans w/ only silence for Lebanese & Palestinians bothered me; but I am a loving/forgiving person & it was silence after all – not abuse. But when I read the comments Thom Yorke posted on the Radiohead website saying something like ‘If I were them I would just leave’ (Referring to civilians in the middle of being crushed to death in the excoriating Israeli State bombing of South Lebanon in summer 2006) & blaming the people there for this fate because they had ‘voted for Hezballah’ (I am paraphrasing here) I could never bring myself to listen to them again. I gave my whole cd collection to my childhood classmate’s young daughters – as they were fans. (= every cd album & single from 1995 to 2006 inc. special edition w/ artwork & rare out of pressing & import etc.).
Regarding what you have asked me to see (evidence/his exact words etc.) I think I actually printed out the page & it may be in my files. I am a collage artist & poet & so have boxes & boxes & files of papers & ephemera so I would have to look for it & am mad busy now. If I find it before we all turn to dust I will scan it & post it here for you (if allowed/comments not closed).
The reason why I printed it out was because – if you observed Mr.Yorke over the years – he was obviously distressed over that whole thing & was posting things on the website & then deleting them. He posted something about wanting Israel to stop the bombing (& Blair?) also. After it had become really beyond the pale. But in response to that comment of his a lot of Israeli fans were posting on various blogs & sites telling Thom that ‘Israel has a right to defend itself’ & other typical comments in that vein. When they said those things he took his comment criticising Israel down – either the next day or several days afterward. (It was really quick).
As that was really astonishing & angering to me I printed out the comments about Lebanese leaving & Hezballah; because I was afraid he would delete that post also. I can’t recall perfectly but I think he left those comments I’ve written of up. So if you go back into their archive on their website to Summer 2006 you may be able to find that one. (The dates during the bombing).
Believe me when I say that angered me also! That he deleted his criticism of the Israeli govt military – but NOT his comments criticising Lebanese civilians because they did not ‘leave’ & had ‘voted for Hezballah’ (the one group that cares for them). The idea that elderly & disabled people & widows & mothers w/ many children CAN leave is madness anyway. Furthermore The State of Israel deliberately bombed people after TELLING them to ‘leave’. For evidence of this search photos of The Marwahin Massacre.
Believe me I understand you. But after I read this from him I could no longer listen to his voice or even look at photos of him/them (Radiohead) anymore. Meanwhile I hope you find a lot of other beautiful & interesting music to listen to. There’s a LOT of amazing stuff out there. Including by Lebanese & Palestinian musicians & singers & hip hop artists… also other English musicians & singers & hip hop artists. . Love to you xxx
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Thanks Zoe. I already searched before I asked you, there seems to be no evidence regarding those comments although I beleive everything you are saying. I do not believe you can access their old posts anymore because everything was wiped clean last year before they released they latest album. I would like to continue dialogue with you if possible as you seem well informed.
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The right-wing have damned Yorke further by their tacit support of his greedy actions. With friends like that, it’s no wonder Yorke now has enemies.
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