The plight of Palestinian people was a key feature of major performances at this year's Glastonbury festival.
Ending today at UK's Worthy Farm, a number of the event’s major headliners reiterated their support for while calling for an end to the Israel-Gaza War.
Here are five artists speaking out on Palestine during their Glastonbury appearance.
1. Coldplay and Elyanna
For Coldplay's record fifth headlining performance at the main Pyramid stage, the UK band brought Palestinian singer Elyanna to sing 2019 song Arabesque.
The track is particularly resonant as it was inspired by Chris Martin's 2017 visit to Palestine where he met the oud group Le Trio Joubran.
Appearing in the album Everyday Life, the song is an ode to the healing power of the arts as frontman Chris Martin sings: "We share the same blood. Music is the weapon; music is the weapon of the future."
This was also Elyanna’s first appearance at Glastonbury and follows her star-making concert at the 2023 Coachella music festival.
In April, she made her US television debut on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, proudly donning the Palestinian keffiyeh headscarf amid a vivid backdrop illuminating reams of Arabic poetry. The medley featured Mama Eh, from her new album Woledto, and marked the first time a song was performed entirely in Arabic in the Emmy-winning show's 31-year history.
2. Dua Lipa
The British-Albanian pop-star Dua Lipa performed a hit-filled set at the Pyramid Stage on Friday night amid a flurry of Palestinian flags. Social media footage shows Lipa singing in front of flag bearing the words Glasto for Palestine, a move interpreted as her support for the cause.
Lipa’s stance was less ambiguous last month when she took to Instagram and labelled the Israeli army’s action as "genocide".
“The whole world is mobilising to stop the Israeli genocide. Please show your solidarity with Gaza," she wrote.
3. Charlotte Church
Welsh singer Charlotte Church is no stranger to the Palestinian cause. In February she led a 100 strong choir in a rendition of the song From the River to the Sea.
On Friday, she took the Left Field stage wearing a red and white keffiyeh. After leading the crowd in a spot of improvisational singing she said: “And I’m going to give some love and feeling to Palestine. To all the people and all the mothers and the children – we are thinking of you, we carry you in our hearts... Free Palestine."
4. Damon Albarn
The Blur and Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn made a guest appearance as part of Bombay Bicycle Club's set on Friday. After duetting with the band on 2023 song Heaven, Albarn spoke of Palestine as a rallying cry to those ambivalent about UK's coming elections on Thursday.
“Three things, and you have to show me how you feel about them: Palestine. Are you pro-Palestine? Do you feel that’s an unfair war? Okay,“ he said. “The importance of voting next week? Now, I don’t blame you for being ambivalent about that, but it’s still really important. And thirdly, maybe it is time we stopped putting octogenarians in control of the whole world.”
5. Idles
British rockers Idles dedicated the potent track Mother, from their 2008 debut album Brutalism to all Palestinians.
"This song is a celebration of all the insults that I was thrown over the years, and I tried to turn it into something beautiful,” singer Joe Talbot said when introducing the work. "We make music, and it carried us here and you in turn, saved us. This is for the people of Palestine and this is for you."
According to music site Far Out, the band dedicated the same song to Palestine earlier this year in the launch show for new album Tangkin London.
On stage in Brixton, Talbot said: “I know deep within my heart, that if she was alive today, she would want me to say: ‘Long live Palestine'.”
The National photo project
Chris Whiteoak, a photographer at The National, spent months taking some of Jacqui Allan's props around the UAE, positioning them perfectly in front of some of the country's most recognisable landmarks. He placed a pirate on Kite Beach, in front of the Burj Al Arab, the Cheshire Cat from Alice in Wonderland at the Burj Khalifa, and brought one of Allan's snails (Freddie, which represents her grandfather) to the Dubai Frame. In Abu Dhabi, a dinosaur went to Al Ain's Jebel Hafeet. And a flamingo was taken all the way to the Hatta Mountains. This special project suitably brings to life the quirky nature of Allan's prop shop (and Allan herself!).
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Muslim Council of Elders condemns terrorism on religious sites
The Muslim Council of Elders has strongly condemned the criminal attacks on religious sites in Britain.
It firmly rejected “acts of terrorism, which constitute a flagrant violation of the sanctity of houses of worship”.
“Attacking places of worship is a form of terrorism and extremism that threatens peace and stability within societies,” it said.
The council also warned against the rise of hate speech, racism, extremism and Islamophobia. It urged the international community to join efforts to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence.
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