However, the message overwhelmingly centers on condemning Israel’s military actions and the humanitarian crisis facing Palestinians, while giving minimal attention to the brutal mass killings and sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas terrorists on October 7.
The statement opens with Bono expressing deep sorrow over the humanitarian situation, condemning “the blocking of humanitarian aid” into Gaza and warning that Israel’s announced “military takeover of Gaza City” has pushed the conflict “into uncharted territory.” Although he briefly calls the “rape, murder, and abduction of Israelis at the Nova music festival” evil, this rare acknowledgment is fleeting, lacking detail about the scale of the October 7 massacre, where over 1,200 Israelis, including civilians, were brutally killed, hundreds more injured, and many subjected to horrific sexual violence.
Instead, Bono quickly pivots to highlighting the decades-long Palestinian experience, describing Gaza’s inhabitants as enduring “marginalization, oppression, occupation and the systematic stealing of the land that is rightfully theirs.” He emphasizes that “Hamas are not the Palestinian people,” yet his condemnation of Hamas remains relatively muted, labeling their 1988 charter “an evil read” but stopping short of detailing the group’s crimes or responsibilities for the conflict’s outbreak.
Significant attention is given to the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza, which Bono compares to “man-made famine” witnessed in places like Ethiopia. He condemns the Israeli government led by Benjamin Netanyahu for what he calls “brutality” and a “moral failure” in how it has handled Gaza, both before and after the October 7 attacks.
Bono accuses the government of imposing a blockade that amounts to collective punishment, saying “the Government of Israel… deserves our categorical and unequivocal condemnation” for its actions in Gaza and the West Bank. He also warns that Israel’s “plans to colonize Gaza” would destroy any prospects for peace.
The focus on Palestinian suffering overshadows the hostage crisis and Hamas’ deliberate starvation of captives. Hostages Evyatar David and Rom Braslavski appear severely malnourished, pleading for food and water while terrorists feast on stolen aid. Braslavski’s father warns, “The hostages are dying… this is death. It’s a Holocaust.”
Other members of U2 contribute to the statement as well. Drummer Larry Mullen Jr. describes the massacre as “harrowing,” yet quickly condemns Israel’s “indiscriminate decimation of most homes and hospitals in Gaza” and the imposition of famine as “inhumane and criminal.” Bassist Adam Clayton questions how Israel’s advanced military technology could justify the “indiscriminate destruction” of civilian infrastructure, calling for the “preservation of civilian life” as a choice in this war.
Throughout their message, U2 frames the October 7 attacks largely as a catalyst or pretext for Israel’s “disproportionate retaliation” rather than focusing on the unprecedented terror attack’s horrific details—including the mass murders, widespread rapes and kidnappings carried out by Hamas terrorists.
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This is not the first time Bono has spoken out about the current war in Gaza, calling for action outside of social media, although this time it is an unequivocal and poignant letter. In May 2025, at the Ivors Awards ceremony in London, he called for peace on stage and sent a direct message to both sides, calling on Hamas to release the hostages and stop the war, and said "Israel, free yourself from Benjamin Netanyahu and the far-right fundamentalists who distort your scriptures." Immediately afterwards, the band performed an acoustic version of "Sunday Bloody Sunday."
Two days after the October 7 massacre, the band held an on-stage tribute for the revelers at the Nova Festival, dedicating the song "Pride (In the Name of Love)" to them. "I want to sing for our brothers and sisters, who they themselves were singing at the Supernova Sukkot Festival in Israel," the Irish singer said on stage at the time, adding: "we sing for those, our people, our kind of people, music people, playful, experimental people, our kind of people, we sing for them."
The lyrics were also changed for the same performance: "Early morning, October 7 / The sun rises in my desert sky / Star of David, they took your lives / But they can't take your pride!"