Radiohead frontman Thom Yorke briefly left the stage during an Australian concert after a heated exchange with a pro-Palestinian heckler. Yorke was performing a solo show on Wednesday night in Melbourne when a concert-goer started criticizing him about the increasing death toll in Gaza.
"How many dead children will it take for you to condemn the genocide in Gaza?" the heckler shouted. In a sharp response, Yorke accused the man of spoiling the show for other fans and challenged him to come up on stage. "Don't stand there like a coward, come here and say it. You want to ruin everyone's night," Yorke retorted.
Yorke briefly exited the stage as the crowd jeered at the heckler, but he returned shortly afterward to perform his final song — Radiohead's 1997 hit "Karma Police".
In 2017, Radiohead faced criticism from pro-Palestinian activists for performing a concert in Tel Aviv. Yorke defended the decision on Twitter, stating, "Playing in a country isn't the same as endorsing its government. We've played in Israel for over 20 years through various governments, some more liberal than others. Just as we do in America." He further clarified, "We don't endorse Netanyahu any more than Trump, but we still play in America."
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