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U2’s Bono changes lyrics in tribute to Israeli music festival victims of Hamas attack
(JTA) — The original lyrics of U2’s hit song “Pride (In the Name of Love)” were about Martin Luther King, Jr. But on Sunday night, the band’s singer Bono changed some of the song’s lyrics to pay tribute to Israeli victims of Hamas’ attacks.
In a break in their performance of the song at the newly-opened Sphere venue outside of Las Vegas, Bono mentioned the Supernova music festival by name. Over 250 festival-goers at the event held in the desert in southern Israel were killed on Saturday as Hamas militants opened fire and looked to take many hostage.
“We sing for those, our people, our kind of people — music people, playful, experimental people,” said the 22-time Grammy-winner, who has for decades been an antiwar activist who has commented on conflict around the world.
He then sang an altered verse dedicated to the victims: “Early morning, Oct. 7/Sun is rising in the desert sky/Stars of David, they took your life/They could not take your pride.”
The original verse references King’s assassination in Memphis on April 4, 1968.
U2 & Bono changed the lyrics to their legendary song Pride (In the Name of Love) during their show at The Sphere in Las Vegas to show their support for Israel. Original lyrics: Early morning, April four Shot rings out in the Memphis sky. Free at last, they took your life They could not take your pride. Changed to: Early morning, October 7th Sun is rising in the desert sky Stars of David, they took your life They could not take your pride. #u2 #bono #israelunderfire
♬ original sound – Jewish News
Bono was not the only celebrity to comment on the weekend’s violence. Madonna, who is known to be a student of Kabbalah, posted a graphic video to Instagram showing footage of Hamas violence. She wrote a long caption, including “My heart goes out to Israel. To Families and Homes that have been destroyed. To children who are lost. To Innocent Victims who have Been Killed.”
Other celebrities to post messages of support for Israel include Israeli “Wonder Woman” star Gal Gadot, Zoey Deutch, Jamie Lee Curtis, Amy Schumer, Kylie Jenner, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Sarah Michelle Gellar, Mandy Moore and Sofia Richie — the daughter of Lionel Richie who converted to Judaism before marrying her Jewish husband.
On Instagram, Jewish comedian Sarah Silverman reposted a note aimed at activists and others who have celebrated Hamas’ violence. Broadway star and Grammy-winner Josh Groban re-posted a note from Israeli-American composer Or Matias, who was music director for the hit show “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812,” which starred Groban. Matias said that he has been “vocally critical of Israel’s government” but added that those who are silent in the wake of the attacks are “not purely pro-peace. You are anti-Israel.”
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The post U2’s Bono changes lyrics in tribute to Israeli music festival victims of Hamas attack appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War
Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests
A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan
Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.