Madonna, U2 speak out on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza

Madonna and U2 have each shone attention on the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, among the biggest music stars to do so since the war in the Palestinian enclave began in late 2023 after Hamas's deadly rampage in southern Israel.

The statements hours apart took different forms.

Madonna's post on Instagram was an open letter to Pope Leo XIV, calling on the American pontiff to "please go to Gaza and bring your light to the children before it's too late."

"The children of the world belong to everyone," the pop superstar said. "You are the only one of us who cannot be denied entry. We need the humanitarian gates to be fully opened to save these innocent children."

U2, meanwhile, in a joint statement posted Sunday, said that "the blocking of humanitarian aid and now plans for a military takeover of Gaza City has taken the conflict into uncharted territory."

The communiqué was accompanied by statements from each band member, with front man Bono saying that the "images of starving children" recalled his time in Ethiopia 40 years ago amid that country's famine. He also condemned the Hamas-led attack on the Nova music festival as "evil."

Israel launched its aerial and ground offensive on Gaza after Hamas militants stormed into southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. After previous repatriations and deaths, the government of Benjamin Netanyahu believes some 50 Israeli hostages remain in Gaza, with around 20 people still alive.

Israel's subsequent military assault has seen more than 61,000 Palestinians killed, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

The ministry said last week that around 200 Palestinians have died of starvation in Gaza since the war began, nearly half of whom were children. And the World Health Organization recently said that in July alone, nearly 12,000 children under five were identified as having acute malnutrition in Gaza — the highest monthly figure ever recorded.

Governments and aid organizations have also condemned the killings increasingly seen this summer of Palestinians gathered at aid distribution locations.

In her comments, Madonna stressed she wasn't "taking sides" in the conflict.

"Everyone is suffering. Including the mothers of the hostages," she wrote. "I pray that they are released as well. I am merely trying to do what I can to keep these children from dying of starvation."

The Pope recently renewed his call for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, asking the international community to respect humanitarian laws and the obligation to protect civilians.

U2 — singer Bono, guitarist the Edge, bass player Adam Clayton and drummer Larry Mullen — are no strangers to using music to promote causes, having participated in the 1980s in Live Aid for famine relief in Africa, Artists United Against Apartheid in South Africa, and in various Amnesty International concerts.

In his individual statement, the Edge directed his comments to Netanyahu, saying the longer the war continued, Israel risked "becoming isolated, mistrusted, and remembered not as a haven from persecution, but as a state that, when provoked, systematically persecuted a neighbouring civilian population."

"We know from our own experience in Ireland that peace is not made through dominance," he said, a reference to the decades-long Troubles in Northern Ireland which killed more than 3,500 people across Great Britain and Ireland between the late 1960s and late 1990s, including civilians and British military personnel.

Bono added that the band stood in solidarity with "the people of Palestine who truly seek a path to peace and coexistence with Israel and with their rightful and legitimate demand for statehood," as well as "the remaining hostages and plead that someone rational negotiate their release."

While a number of musicians were among the artists calling for a ceasefire just weeks after Israel began its military campaign, as the war has dragged on, more have become increasingly vocal, with the provocative statements of Kneecap and Bob Vylan this year leading to vigorous debate about freedom of speech.

Other acts have taken pains to not provoke. Acknowledging the "unfolding humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza" in May, Radiohead singer Thom Yorke said he was dismayed at "social media witch-hunts on either side, pressurizing artists and whoever they feel like … to make statements, etc., do very little except heighten the tension, fear and over-simplification of what are complex problems."

Music producer Brian Eno is among a group of artists, including members of the Palestinian diaspora, organizing a concert at London's Wembley Stadium on Sept. 17. The Together for Palestine event announced its initial lineup last week, with all proceeds going to support Palestinian-led organizations providing humanitarian relief in Gaza.