Roger Waters performed that previously reported gig in Israel last night. You will remember that his decision to play the concert drew criticism from a variety of sources when the concert was announced, given his history of opposition to Israel's policies towards Palestinians. But the musician refused to appear in any usual venues in Tel Aviv, citing his aforementioned opposition, agreeing instead to appear in a field halfway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. In the hours preceding the performance, cars were backed up for miles as tens of thousands of fans made their way to the gig.
Appearing at the outdoor event near the Jewish-Arab village of Neveh Shalom, Waters began by urging Israel to tear down the West Bank barrier, constructed by the Israeli state, they claim, to keep out Palestinian suicide bombers. Following his arrival in the country on Wednesday, the former Pink Floyd man had visited a section of the wall that runs through the Palestinian settlement of Bethlehem, and spray-painted a line from 'The Wall' - "no thought control" on it. He told reporters at the site: "It fills me with horror. You can see photographs of something like this, but until you've seen the actual edifice itself and seen what it's doing to these communities ... it's hard to comprehend that they could be doing this."
A staff member at the gig told Israel Radio that the monks at the Trappist monastery close to where the concert was staged had given their blessing, both for the concert, and for Waters' message of coexistence but added that, given that it's a silent order "it's not likely that they'll sing along."