When Paul McCartney’s September 25 concert in Tel Aviv drew death threats from an obscure Syrian-born extremist cleric, Ted Nugent quickly turned it into a publicity gambit to promote his upcoming book.
But the real security detail for McCartney’s visit to honor the country’s 60th anniversary in song was considerably more extensive than a bow-hunting Michigan rocker with NRA credentials: 5,000 security personnel, ranging from local police to members of Britain’s MI6 Secret Intelligence Service and Israel’s own Mossad intelligence agency, took part in guarding McCartney on his brief visit to the country, at an estimated cost of $2.8 million.
A source told Britain’s Daily Mirror newspaper that "no one is taking anything for granted. The level of security is more than we've ever seen. Everything is being done to ensure that this passes without incident.” The security precautions for McCartney’s visit reportedly outstripped even those for President George W. Bush.
McCartney’s entourage, which included Paul’s new girlfriend Nancy Shevell, stayed in Tel Aviv’s posh Dan Hotel ― where, as another security precaution, they also booked the 21 suites surrounding their own at a cost of almost $130,000.
“Only security and a handful of Paul’s entourage will be near him,” the Daily Mirror’s source reported. “Everything is tailored to ensure he is 100% safe.”
Near the Yarkon Park concert site, approaching roads were closed entirely and bus lines re-routed, with 1,000 extra local police pressed into service for the event.
McCartney had hoped to visit Ramallah, the unofficial capital of the Palestinian National Authority and a historic hotbed of resistance against Israeli occupation in the West Bank, but cancelled due to security concerns. Instead, he and Shevell visited the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem (the traditional birthplace of Christ) and spent time with students at a local music school, where he also performed a few songs.
“Any high-profile event brings some worries, but I have a very good team of people,” the 66-year-old McCartney said of security arrangements virtually unprecedented for an entertainer. “I think most people understand that my message is a global and peaceful one. My mission, if I have one, is humanitarian, and concerns all people, not just a few.”
Underscoring his message of reconciliation, McCartney sprinkled his between-song patter with phrases in both Hebrew and Arabic, using a cheat-sheet taped to the stage to help with pronunciation. The two-hour concert included a slew of Beatles favorites, including “Hey Jude,” “Yesterday,” “Eleanor Rigby” and “Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band.”
But it was his performance of John Lennon’s “Give Peace a Chance” that reportedly drew the warmest reaction from the crowd of 45,000, with multitudes waving their lit cell phones in the air like the cigarette lighter tradition of old. As the song ended, he exhorted the crowd that “you'll find it if you want it.” —Jerry McCulley