Roger Waters says Bono is a “disgusting asshole”

Once again Roger Waters returns to center stage for his statements regarding his thoughts, always critical, towards Israel’s politics.

This time he lashed out at U2 frontman Bono, describing him as “disgusting” and “an arsehole” in response to comments about the Israel-Hamas conflict made by the Irishman on stage.

Speaking during one of their residency shows at Sphere in Las Vegas, Bono used the performance to pay tribute to those killed during the October 7 attack on the Israeli music festival Supernova.

“In light of what happened in Israel and Gaza, a song about nonviolence even seems ridiculous, but our prayers have always been for peace and nonviolence,” Bono told the crowd as he introduced “Pride (In The Name Of Love)”. “But our hearts and our anger, you know where they go. He then she sings with us… and with those beautiful boys at that music festival”.

He then played the song with changed lyrics, singing “Early in the morning, October 7th, the sun is rising in the desert sky… Stars of David, they took your life but they couldn’t take your pride”, instead of the original verses.

Now, Waters – who has always been very critical of the State of Israel – has targeted the musician for his comments and during an interview with Al Jazeera branded the comments made during the concert as “disgusting”.

“My mother told me that, when faced with difficult problems, the first thing to do is read: read, read, read. So, the next part is easy: do the right thing,” she said, referring to her family history of seeing her father killed in World War II.

“Anyone who knows Bono should go grab him by the ankles and shake him… until he stops being such a huge piece of shit.”

“We need to start telling these people that your opinion is so disgusting and degrading…” he added. “What he did a couple of weeks ago at the Sphere in Las Vegas, singing about the Stars of David, was one of the most disgusting things I’ve ever seen in my life.”

This is certainly not the first time Waters has openly criticized Israel. In recent months, the former Pink Floyd member has made headlines for his comments on the conflict in Palestine and accusations of anti-Semitism.

He has repeatedly denied such accusations and explained that his contempt is aimed at Israel, not Judaism. He also accused Israel of “misusing the term anti-Semitism to intimidate people like me into silence.”

He was recently the subject of a documentary, “The Dark Side Of Roger Waters”, produced by the Campaign Against Anti-Semitism, which collected various episodes of alleged anti-Semitism concerning the musician.

Rogers spoke out against the documentary in a post on his official website, dismissing the project as “a flimsy and unapologetic piece of propaganda.” He later claimed that he “indiscriminately mixes things I would have said or done at different times and in different contexts, in an attempt to paint me as an anti-Semite, without any basis in fact.”

The documentary highlights a controversial concert held in Germany in May 2023, which was criticized by the US State Department which described it as “deeply offensive to the Jewish people”. The concert saw him appear on stage wearing a black trench coat with a swastika-like emblem featured in “The Wall”. At the time, the musician defended the choice, claiming that the segment was a statement against fascism, injustice and bigotry and called the criticism “false and politically motivated.” (Read here)

In April, Waters won a legal battle to hold a concert in Frankfurt after it was initially canceled over anti-Semitism allegations, and last month it was reported that he had been fired from his label BMG over his comments about Israel.

Furthermore, a few days ago the former Pink Floyd published on YouTube “Under the rubble“, “Under the rubble”, the preview of a new song dedicated to the population of Gaza who find themselves at the center of the conflict that is inflaming the Middle East.

As for U2, over the weekend the Irish rock band once again used their Las Vegas shows to make a political statement, using their Saturday show to pay tribute to Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who was imprisoned in a Russian penal colony and died suddenly on Friday (Feb. 16). (Read here)