Beatlemania has taken hold in Israel as Paul McCartney prepares to play his first ever concert in the Jewish state on Thursday, saying he hopes to spread a message of peace in the troubled region.
Four decades after the Fab Four were forced to cancel a gig over official fears they would corrupt the country's youth, Sir Paul will perform an outdoor concert in Tel Aviv, defying death threats from an Islamist cleric and calls from pro-Palestinian groups who wanted him to boycott Israel.
Tight security will surround Hayarkon Park, where tens of thousands of people, some paying as much as 1,000 euros for the privilege, will watch the legendary left-handed guitarist belt out his tunes.
"You have to realise that any high-profile event brings with it some worries," the 66-year-old said in an interview with The Jerusalem Post published on Sunday.
Thousands of people gathered at the park gates hours before the 8:00 pm (1700 GMT) concert, as police reinforcements patrolled the surrounding streets on foot and horseback.
Earlier this month, militant Lebanese cleric Omar Bakri Muhammad was quoted by London's Sunday Express as saying McCartney should not travel to Israel. "He will not be safe there. The sacrifice operatives will be waiting for him."
But McCartney, one of two surviving ex-Beatles along with Ringo Starr, said he hopes his "Friendship First" concert will spread a message of peace.
"It often does happen you know, you'll go to a place and it can affect the audience," he said on his website.
Several pro-Palestinian groups had urged the pop star to boycott Israel because of the way it treats Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and the besieged Gaza Strip.
"I was approached by different groups and political bodies who asked me not to come," McCartney told Israel's top-selling Yediot Aharonot newspaper. "I do what I think, and I have many friends who support Israel."
McCartney made a surprise trip on Tuesday to the West Bank town of Bethlehem just outside of Jerusalem, where he lit a candle at the Church of the Nativity, built on the traditional site of Jesus's birth.
He also paid a brief visit to the Edward Said Music Conservatory there, where he watched a rehearsal by young Palestinian students.
The British musician had told journalists and fans who greeted him at Ben Gurion airport outside Tel Aviv on Wednesday that he wanted to bring "a message of peace and love" to the Middle East.
And for many Israelis, the concert is an opportunity to make up for a past wrong.
The Beatles had planned to play in Israel at the height of Beatlemania in 1965, but they were cancelled after sponsors failed to raise enough money as members of parliament voiced concern they might corrupt young Israeli minds.
Israel's ambassador to Britain Ron Proser apologised for the cancellation earlier this year, calling it "a great missed opportunity" in a letter to the band's surviving members.
"We thought it was quite amusing really, being banned," the ex-Beatle said on his website. "It's kind of cute that they are apologising. It's very courteous, but you know I wasn't really offended in the first place."
More than 40,000 tickets have been sold since they went on sale online on Tuesday, with regular seats going for 150 dollars (100 euros) and special VIP seats thirty metres (yards) from the stage selling for 1,500 dollars.
McCartney and his entourage have taken up 21 rooms in a luxury hotel on the Mediterranean seashore, where their bill is expected to exceed 100,000 dollars (66,000 euros), media reported.
Source: AFP Global Edition
