Ed Sheeran speaks out on Gaza conflict at concert

British singer Ed Sheeran has talked about the Gaza war for the first time. This comes after the removal of rapper Macklemore from his Loop Tour over his pro-Palestinian comments.

Sheeran spoke on Saturday night during his concert at Lincoln Financial Field in Philadelphia. He called the situation in Gaza “catastrophic and unjustifiable” and said he could no longer stay silent about the conflict.

The singer, who usually avoids political discussions at his concerts, told the audience he wanted his music to focus on unity and humanity. “Now, I want to address the question of where I stand in the situation in Israel and Palestine and whether my doing this concert here tonight implies where I stand,” he said.

He explained, “I have tried in my career not to be a political commentator of any kind because I want my musical shows to be about unity, not division. About humanity, not politics. But this is a humanitarian issue and I cannot hide how I feel about it any more.”

Sheeran referred to the attack on October 7, 2023, in Israel, including the assault on the Nova music festival. He called it “horrific and compounded centuries of Jewish pain.”

On Gaza, he said, “What is happening in Gaza is catastrophic and unjustifiable and disproportionate. Our hearts have been broken by the scale of devastation and loss of civilians’ lives. Children’s lives.”

He also spoke about “systemic injustice” in the West Bank. Sheeran mentioned he was trying to understand how he could help those impacted by the conflict.

“I’m listening and learning because I do not know enough,” he stated.

The singer addressed the controversy around his tour as well. He said his concerts should be places where people with different opinions could come together.

“Everyone is welcome and everyone here can stand beside people that have opposing views and everyone here can stand by people that they don’t agree with on everything but they can all agree by singing these songs,” he said.

“And these songs are about love, hope and unity,” he added.

His comments came shortly after Macklemore was taken off the Loop Tour for his pro-Palestinian statements, including his “Free Palestine” statement at a show on September 5 in New Jersey.

Sheeran had said the decision to remove Macklemore was not his, while the tour promoter mentioned venue concerns were involved. Other supporting acts like Finneas, Lukas Graham, and Aaron Rowe also pulled out in support of Macklemore, along with the Irish folk band Beoga.

The controversy led to protests outside Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday. Pro-Palestinian protesters criticized Macklemore’s removal from the tour.