DUBAI: British musician Roger Waters, the co-founder of rock band Pink Floyd, this week paid tribute to late Palestinian journalist Shireen Abu Akleh during his New York concert.
The journalist’s name appeared in large letters on the concert’s screens with words saying that her crime was “being Palestinian” and her punishment was “death.”
Abu Akleh, a Palestinian-American, was killed on May 11 during an Israeli raid in the occupied West Bank.
Social media users quickly took to Twitter and Instagram to share pictures of the concert’s backdrop.
“Love @rogerwaters for his music and for speaking out. Amazing and powerful. Justice for Shireen Abu Akleh and all the Palestinians killed by Israel’s apartheid regime,” wrote one user on Twitter.
The 78-year-old music sensation has always been vocal about his support for Palestinians.
In May 2021, Waters posted a video on his Twitter, with the caption calling Israel an apartheid state.
In the video, the singer condemned Israel over the evictions of Palestinians in East Jerusalem’s Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood and said: “It is unbelievable. It makes me so angry.”
That same month, Waters shared another video on Twitter and said: “At 10 past three this afternoon, I got a message that Israel has told the UN it will bomb the Al-Aqsa and Al-Buraq UN Schools in two hours’ time. That’s 5 p.m. Eastern Time here.
“The schools are overcrowded with refugees, mainly women, and children. They have nowhere to go. This is not a drill,” said Waters.
In 2017, Waters and dozens of other artists called on British rock band Radiohead to cancel a concert in Israel.
“In asking you not to perform in Israel, Palestinians have appealed to you to take one small step to help pressure Israel to end its violation of basic rights and international law,” the letter read at the time.