In Israel, a particular distributing song advocating for the mass murder of Palestinians has been gaining significant traction. ‘Harbu Darbu’ by Israeli musical duo Ness & Stilla has made its way to the top of the charts on streaming platforms like YouTube and Spotify.
It is today Israel’s number one song and just listening to the first few seconds of ‘Harbu Darbu’, its message is very clear. Set against a drill beat, the musical duo expresses their disdain over anyone who is supporting Palestine by spewing lyrics like “Who do you think you are screaming for a free Palestine, spit on you sons of Amalek, Let’s go! Sabotage!”
Diving deeper into the song, the people they are referring to in the lyrics, ‘Amalek’, are actually an ancient tribe that is mentioned in the Torah who are considered the ultimate enemies of Israel. To the Israeli community, It is clear that the ‘Amalek’ are the Palestinian people. Along with glorifying the murder of thousands of Palestinians, the song also begins to list out names of celebrities and figures supporting Palestine who they are threatening to kill including Bella Hadid and Dua Lipa.
The song didn’t just make a chart-topper, it also became a go-to choice for many Israelis who also made videos using the song. Delivering such an aggressive and hateful song directed at Palestinians has led to major backlash all over social media. One user berated them with the comment “I love how badly they are self-sabotaging their image.” While another took action in trying to take down the song, “reported it on Spotify, we all should.”
Being a major hit across Israeli music platforms showcases the dominant narrative in Israel, one fueled by hate and animosity towards the Palestinian people. Despite this, in light of the genocide, along with Israeli anthems are even more songs fighting for Palestinian resistance whether it’s Sharmoofers’ latest track ‘Resala’ or Hany Shaker’s ‘El Hawya Araby.’
