Over 1,000 musicians join Corbyn’s call for a ceasefire in Gaza – including Paloma Faith and Rag N Bone Man

Sam Fender, The Libertines, Paloma Faith, and Rag N Bone Man are among over 1,000 artists who are backing Jeremy Corbyn’s call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. The musicians have all signed the Peace and Justice Project-led open letter ‘Music For A Ceasefire‘ calling for Israel to end its bombing of Gaza and hostilities in the Occupied Territories.

Music for a Ceasefire in Gaza

Corbyn, alongside the Peace & Justice Project, has launched the ‘Music For A Ceasefire’ open letter, bringing together a diverse coalition of artists, musicians and performers demanding the UK and US governments to call for immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

The letter states:

We the undersigned call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and an end to the bombardment of Palestine that has already taken the lives of over 10,000 innocent civilians, aid workers and journalists.

The United Nations secretary general António Guterres has said Gaza is becoming “a graveyard for children”, and whilst the devastation continues, the UK and US governments fail to stand up for humanity, condemn the collective punishment of the Palestinian people and advocate for peace instead of bloodshed.

A ceasefire would allow for unhindered humanitarian aid in Gaza, where the World Health Organisation has said the level of death and suffering by the 2.2 million civilians caught up in this conflict is “hard to fathom”.

Current signatories include:

• Becky Hill.
• Paloma Faith.
• Fontaines D.C.
• Big Zuu.
• Rag N Bone Man.
• Declan McKenna.
• Seán Ono Lennon.
• IDLES.
• Ghetts.
• Bob Vylan.
• MNEK.
• Primal Scream.
• Alfie Templeman.

Artists who helped launch Music For A Ceasefire included Clean Bandit, Enter Shikari, NOAHFINNCE, King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, Architects, and The Last Dinner Party. You can read the full letter text and list of signatories here.

The civilian death toll in Gaza is now over 11,000 following Israel’s sustained bombardment of the area, including 4,500 children. Yet both UK prime minister Rishi Sunak and US president Joe Biden, as well as UK Labour Party leader Keir Starmer, have resisted all calls for a ceasefire in Gaza. It comes as UK and US companies which export arms to the Israeli military have sparked worker-led demonstrations and blockades.

Artists are encouraged to add their names to the open letter by emailing info(at)thecorbynproject.com or reaching out via social media

‘How many more must die before political leaders listen?’

Samuel Sweek, Music For A Ceasefire convener, said:

For decades, music and the arts have been instrumental in uniting people for the cause of peace.  That is why we launched the Music For A Ceasefire open letter, calling on world leaders to support an immediate ceasefire in Gaza to end the violence and destruction that has brutally taken the lives of over 11,000 innocent people.

Whilst we must all unequivocally condemn the acts of terror committed by Hamas, the lack of condemnation of the collective punishment of the Palestinian people from world leaders is unforgivable.

There can never be any justification for the systematic slaughter of an entire population and we are demanding the UK and US governments play their part in bringing about lasting peace to the region by calling for an end to the violence, hostage releases and an end to the illegal Israeli occupation of Palestine.

Corbyn, founder of Peace and Justice Project, said:

How many more innocent men, women and children must die before political leaders listen to our global movement for peace?

I condemn the targeting of all civilian life. That includes the deplorable acts of terror by Hamas against Israeli civilians – and that includes acts of terror by the Israeli government against Palestinian civilians.

More than 11,000 people in Gaza have now been killed, almost half of whom are children. Thousands more may be trapped under rubble.  Over 1.5 million Palestinians have been displaced.  Without a peaceful and political solution, this cycle of violence will go on and on.

Every day, every hour and every minute that the bombing is allowed to continue, we lose more of our common humanity.

But all around the world, we are seeing more and more people join the calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Music, peace and solidarity are universal languages, and the world’s artistic and creative community are using their voices to call for lasting peace.  Our politicians must listen.

Featured image via the Peace and Justice Project