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Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood Performs In Tel Aviv, Reportedly Attends Protest Against Israeli Government

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Jonny Greenwood, a member of Radiohead and the Smile and an Oscar-nominated film composer, is the subject of a news story in The Jerusalem Post noting that he performed in Tel Aviv Sunday night after attending a protest there against the Israeli government on Saturday.

Greenwood is married to the Israeli artist Sharona Katan, and last year he released an album with the Israeli musician Dudu Tassa. Sunday, he took the stage with Tassa at Tel Aviv’s Barby Club to perform their music. A European tour supporting the album was canceled as a result of Israel’s war with Hamas. “There are musicians here, not politicians,” Tassa reportedly said from the stage. “Music has always worked wonders, may we know better days and may everyone return safely.” A post on the website for the Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions movement accuses Greenwood of “artwashing genocide” by performing in Israel while the country’s military forces continue to kill Palestinian civilians at an alarming rate.

Radiohead have a long history with Israel. It’s where their early hit “Creep” first broke through, and they’ve performed in the country several times over the years, most recently a 2017 concert that stirred up controversy and protest from supporters of the BDS movement, including peers like Roger Waters, Thurston Moore, and Tunde Adebimpe.

According to the Post, Greenwood attended a demonstration Saturday night at Kaplan Street. The rally, a recurring weekly event, called for Hamas to release their Israeli hostages, for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to be removed, and for the Israeli government to hold elections for new leadership. It has been characterized as a protest against the Israeli government but not a pro-Palestine demonstration.