Disturbed frontman David Draiman has warned that the mainstream media’s coverage of the conflict in Gaza could give rise to a “new Holocaust.”
He has close family in Israel, including brother Ben and his grandmother, and he’s previously spoken out over attitudes to Jews.
Orphaned Land frontman Kobi Farhi this week spoke to TeamRock about the realities of living under the constant threat of missile strikes in the area, saying: “I cannot take any side – not because I’m trying to be politically correct, but because I think everybody’s wrong in war.”
Draiman, whose grandparents survived the Nazi atrocities of the Second World War, says: “The mainstream media’s biased, libellous, and often erroneous portrayal of Israel in the current conflict has fuelled a wave of anti-Semitism, the likes of which I have not witnessed in my lifetime.
“Well done, CNN, BBC, Reuters, MSNBC – you’ve set the stage for a new Holocaust. Maybe you’d be satisfied when the extremist nutbags you defend so much strip the region of the only bastion of true liberty that exists in the region.”
He claims the news outlets have shown support for those “who eagerly martyr their own children, who chant for the death of all Jews, not just the Israelis – and whose ethics, morals and values stand diametrically opposed to your own liberal views of freedom of religion, gay marriage, pro choice, and even democracy itself.”
Referring to Never Again, the title of a Disturbed track dealing with the Holocaust, he adds: “Well, guess what? Never again. Jews aren’t so easy to fuck with any more.”
Draiman spent some of his childhood years in Israel and trained to be a rabbi before deciding he couldn’t support organised religion. He last year decided to call off a tour with side-project Device, saying: “I’ve decided to stay at home where I am needed most right now, with my family and newborn son.”
