David Byrne publishes Brian Eno email on 'ethnic cleansing' in Palestine

David Byrne has published an email sent by Brian Eno in which he strongly criticises the United States for their refusal to act during the Israel/Palestine conflict.

The conflict, which has being ongoing for some time, escalated recently after Israel stepped up its attack on Gaza as a defense against military organisation Hamas. Since 8 July, at least 1,360 Palestinians have been killed, most of whom were civilians.

Byrne published Eno's email regarding the issue on his website, stating that he felt it was his "responsibility" to post it. The letter begins: "Dear All of You. I sense I'm breaking an unspoken rule with this letter, but I can't keep quiet any more."

Eno then slams the United States for refusing to sign up to a UN commision into whether Israel is guilty of war crimes in Gaza. He asks, "What is going on in America? I know from my own experience how slanted your news is, and how little you get to hear about the other side of this story. But - for Christ's sake! - it's not that hard to find out.

"Why does America continue its blind support of this one-sided exercise in ethnic cleansing? WHY? I just don't get it. I really hate to think its just the power of AIPAC… for if that's the case, then your government really is fundamentally corrupt. No, I don't think that's the reason… but I have no idea what it could be. "

Eno also writes: "By the way, most of them are not ethnic Israelis - they're 'right of return' Jews from Russia and Ukraine and Moravia and South Africa and Brooklyn who came to Israel recently with the notion that they had an inviolable (God-given!) right to the land, and that 'Arab' equates with 'vermin' - straightforward old-school racism delivered with the same arrogant, shameless swagger that the good ole boys of Louisiana used to affect."

Brian Eno, who is English, is known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music, and was the synth player for Roxy Music in the early '70s.

Read the full statement on David Byrne's website.