A group of Palestinian artists have written to Roger Waters to ask him to cancel a concert in Israel this summer, or at least to put on a similar concert in Palestine.
The former Pink Floyd man has surprised many in the Middle East by agreeing to perform in Tel Aviv later this year, because he has previously been quite vocal in his criticism of Israel's 370-mile network of fences and concrete barricades in the West Bank. Sliman Manour of the Palestinian Association for Contemporary Art told Reuters: "How can someone who wants to look like a leftist in the world - fighting against the Berlin Wall, for open borders, and for love between people - come to Israel while they are still building their wall and hold a musical event?"
Waters, however, has told The Guardian that he will not cancel the appearance, and not because his opposition to Israel's foreign policy has waned: "I have a lot of fans in Israel, many of whom are refuseniks," he says. "I would not rule out going to Israel because I disapprove of the foreign policy any more than I would refuse to play in the UK because I disapprove of Tony Blair's foreign policy."