Anti-Israel activist Roger Waters of Pink Floyd attacks Australian musician Nick Cave for performing in Israel
Roger Waters, the former vocalist and bassist for the famous band Pink Floyd – and anti-Israel activist – blasted Australian musician Nick Cave for performing in Israel.
Waters has become a prominent supporter of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks Israel's dissolution through political and financial boycotts.
Addressing his 1.3 million followers on Instagram, Waters attacked Cave in a reel where he referred to the musician as "the Australian bloke" and demanded that Cave apologize for supporting “genocide” in Gaza.
"It's ok to be wrong mate. Obviously, you not opposing Genocide is a biggy? But hey! Nobody's perfect? Just say you're sorry. Not to me, and Brian, we don't give a ****. No, say you're sorry to the Palestinians. Join BDS and we'll let bygones be bygones. Love, R," Waters stated.
Waters accused the Australian musician of “whitewashing” serious accusations against Israel, in a response to the Independent newspaper’s interview with Cave.
"Dear Nick Cave, we, the Indigenous people of Palestine, in this agony, implore you, please don’t cross the BDS picket line to sing for your supper in Israel. It’s not complicated, Nick. It’s not complicated," Waters stated.
"That act – singing for your supper in Israel, Nick – that act serves to whitewash the 75-year-old Zionist Israeli occupation, land theft, apartheid, and genocide of our people, Nick. Please, please, please follow the example of Roger Waters and Brian Eno and many, many thousands of others who are active in the BDS movement. Nick, pay attention," Waters said.
However, Cave responded by condemning Waters’ BDS support as “embarrassing” and “deeply damaging.”
Last week, Cave told Reason Magazine that he has an "abiding love" for Israel and said he doesn't believe his music should be used to punish "ordinary people because of the acts of their government."
Many pundits have accused Waters of embracing antisemitism and blasted his hatred of the Jewish state.
In an interview with Piers Morgan in July, Waters claimed there was “no evidence” of Hamas’ atrocities on Oct. 7, denying the mass rapes of Israeli women despite testimonies and evidence that the United Nations acknowledged. Waters also denied that he was an antisemite.
“I am in tears over Gaza every morning when I wake up. I’m only 80 years old, I have never experienced the genocide of a whole people in front of my eyes happening every day,” Waters said during the interview.
In May 2023, Waters was under criminal investigation for performing at a concert in Frankfurt, Germany, while wearing an SS uniform, 'desecrating the memory of Anne Frank' and comparing Israel to Nazi Germany. A pro-Israel supporter managed to avoid security and stormed the stage with an Israeli flag during the concert.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL), a non-governmental organization that combats antisemitism, blasted Waters for embracing antisemitic sentiments and denying Israel’s right to exist.
“His activism has increasingly been characterized as playing into antisemitic tropes, including those about Jewish or “Zionist” power; comparing Israel to Nazi Germany; and disparaging anyone who conveys even tangential support for Israel’s existence,” ADL wrote on its website.
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The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.