Enter Shikari address “atrocity” in Gaza during Reading Festival set: “This is not a tragedy, it is a war crime”

Enter Shikari used their Reading Festival 2025 set to call out the “atrocity” in Gaza. See their full speech below.

• READ MORE: Reading & Leeds 2025 liveblog: all the action as it happens

The band performed on Reading’s Main Stage yesterday (August 23), and reflected on a previous performance in 2010, where frontman Rou Reynolds wore a t-shirt displaying the words “Free Gaza”.

He told the crowd that, back then, he was beginning to learn about the situation in the region, and how Israel “treated Palestinians like second-class citizens. It subjected them to constant intimidation, humiliation, subjugation, and forced them to live in what was often described as an open-air prison,” he said.

“That was 15 years ago. We’ve all seen just how fucking horrific things we’ve got now. We’ve seen the firepower equivalent of six Hiroshima atomic bombs dropped on Gaza in the last two years, every single school and university destroyed. Almost 300 journalists murdered.”

The frontman added: “Doctors killed, maimed, detained. Children shot in the head by snipers. It has to be repeated again and again that this is not a tragedy. This is not a natural disaster. This is the coordinated mass displacement, mass starvation and mass murder of the Palestinians in Gaza. This is not a tragedy, it is a war crime.”

Since Hamas’ attack on Israeli citizens on October 7, 2023 that killed over 1100 people and saw 250 taken as hostages, multiple UN human-rights experts and UN bodies have stated that Israel’s military actions in Gaza may amount to genocide, and the International Court of Justice has found claims of genocide plausible.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 62,000 Palestinians have been killed since October 2023. Israel rejects the genocide accusations and denies committing any war crimes, maintaining that its operations are lawful acts of self-defence.

On Friday, (August 22) it was confirmed that famine is taking place in Gaza, in a report by The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification (IPC), backed by the United Nations. The report acknowledged that the situation is “entirely man-made”, and aid organisations are also accusing Israel of the “systematic obstruction” of food entering the Gaza Strip.

Reynolds continued: “So if you’re watching this live stream genocide on your phone and your heart breaks every day, take strength in knowing that you still have your humanity left, and the world hasn’t beaten it out of you yet.

“Enter Shikari would like to reassert their solidarity with the Jewish people, Muslims, Christians, Atheists and everyone around the world who demands an end to this atrocity. Open the borders and let the aid into Gaza now. Stop supporting and arming Israel now.”

“‘No politics. Please, stick to the music. No politics, please.’ We’ve had that for 20 years, and for 20 years we’ve ignored it, and I’ll tell you why. To be silent in times of atrocity is to assist in maintaining that atrocity.

“I’ll end by paraphrasing a great Jewish sage, Rabbi Tarfon, who once said, ‘It is not the duty of you alone to heal this world, but you must not refrain from trying’. So we will not refrain from standing up, and we will not refrain from speaking out, and we will not refrain from trying to help heal this world. Love only, Free Palestine.”

Fans on Twitter/X complained that the set was cut short on BBC iPlayer, with the speech not aired and, at time of writing, it has not yet been uploaded to the broadcaster’s website.

What is this woke nonsense from the @BBCR1 @BBCiPlayer not showing live bands for reading festival. Where is enter shikari. If limp bizkit isn't shown tonight is crazy

— Itzrm93 (@robbiemclean) August 23, 2025

Did Enter Shikari really only play 6 songs at Reading Fest? #readingfestival

— Jack Miller (@jackryanmiller) August 23, 2025

As if they're only showing half of the Enter Shikari Reading set smh

— Laura (@adaptognz) August 23, 2025

They only played 5 songs from Enter Shikari on the livestream

— J-Man (@DaRealJavier) August 23, 2025

It follows an earlier speech the band made in February, expressing solidarity with Palestine during a show at Wembley Arena. “We have been yelling ‘Free Gaza’, ‘Free Palestine’ for 15 years,” frontman Rou Reynolds said. “I just hope to God that there is still a Gaza and a Palestine left when this fucking nightmare ends.

They also spoke out after Barclays Bank withdrew from sponsoring Download, Latitude and Isle Of Wight festivals following an artist boycott, saying: “We don’t believe in rushed reactions and always want the best outcome for all involved. Thanks to this collective pressure we now believe we have achieved that – Barclays have pulled out of Download Festival.”

Hozier also used his set at Reading to address the situation in Gaza, as well as Palestine Action, Kneecap, free speech and equality, telling the crowd: “Safety and security for everybody in the Middle East means seeing a Palestine that’s free from occupation, that’s free from these cycles of genocide and violence, and it means seeing a Palestine that’s free to move towards meaningful self-determination and statehood.”

Fans watching Reading & Leeds from home can follow the NME’s liveblog here. Also, find out how to watch and listen on TV and radio here.

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