Watch: Madonna expresses support for Israeli hostages and casualties
(Video: Dar Nadler)
While many celebrities avoided speaking about the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas or the hostages in captivity in Gaza during this week's Golden Globe Awards ceremony, pop icon Madonna continues to show her concern for the current situation in the Middle East and raised it again this week during her concert in Boston, this time focusing on the child hostages.
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During her concert on Tuesday in Boston as part of the Celebration tour, Madonna shared with the audience her feelings in light of what was happening, even though she chose not to mention Israel explicitly.
"It's so hard to be a mother these days when you see what's happening in the Middle East," she said, "you're devastated on a regular basis watching innocent children be killed, murdered, kidnapped, tortured and the list goes on and on and on and breaks all of our hearts."
After that, she continued in the tradition that she usually does in her performances, when she turned to the audience and said: "And you might ask yourself what can we do? What can any of us do? We're just one person and you might feel hopeless but don't give up hope because each and every one of us has a light inside of us and we can all share that light with the world. If each and everyone of you shared your light with your neighbor, with your children, with your parents, with your friends, with coworkers, with the person standing next to you that you don't even know, share your light and you're making a difference in the world."
The last children remaining in Hamas captivity are one-year-old Kfir Bibas and four-year-old Ariel Bibas, who were kidnapped from Kibbutz Nir Oz in the October 7 attack along with their mother Shiri. Their father, Yardan Bibas, has also been held captive in Gaza for almost 100 days.
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The Bibas family, still held in captivity for almost 100 days
(Photo: Courtesy of the family)
An Israeli fan who attended the concert shared with Ynet that this singer's comments caught her by surprise as it was the first time that she had gone out to wind down since October 7. ''I felt that it didn't belong to the mental place I was in, so I was very happy that a legend like Madonna was brave enough to say something about our kidnapped children," she said.
"In this atmosphere in the United States in general, and Boston in particular, it takes a lot of courage and a calibrated conscience to say something that smacks of support for Israel. But who will support us if not Queen Esther?" she added, referring to the Hebrew name the Like a Prayer singer adopted after getting involved in Kabbalah.
This is not the first time Madonna has spoken out about the war during her live shows. On October 15, she expressed empathy for the victims of the war during a performance at the O2 Stadium in London.
The day following the deadly attack by Hamas on Israel, the singer shared an informational video on her Instagram page.
"What is Happening in Israel is Devastating.. Watching all of these families and especially children being herded, assaulted and murdered in the streets is Heartbreaking. Imagine if this was happening to you?? It’s Un-fathomable. Conflicts can never be resolved with violence. Unfortunately Humanity does not understand this Universal truth. Has Never Understood it," she wrote.
"We live in a World Ravaged by Hate. My heart goes out to Israel. To Families and Homes that have been destroyed. To children who are lost. To Innocent Victims who have Been Killed. To All who are Suffering or who will suffer from this conflict. Im Praying For you. I am aware that this is the work of Hamas and there are many innocent people in Palestine who do not support this terrorist organization. This Tragic attack will only cause more suffering for everyone Let us all Pray. For Israel. For Peace. For The World."