Amidst the greatest refugee crisis Europe has faced since WWII and the circulation of horrific images of a drowned toddler washed up on a beach near the Turkish resort of Bodrum, The Libertines have acted immediately to help those struggling to escape their war-torn homelands.
The world was shocked by the images, which immediately went viral and became the top trending pictures on Twitter, of 3-year-old Aylan Kurd found dead after drowning when a refugee boat sank.
‘Anyone who saw those pictures overnight could not help but be moved and, as a father, I felt deeply moved by the sight of that young boy on a beach in Turkey,’ said British Prime Minister David Cameron.
A statement announced, ‘Having sold out their UK tour this morning, within minutes of going on-sale, The Libertines have decided that due to the current international refugee crisis, they will be donating proceeds from their English shows to Migrant Offshore Aid Station via organisation http://yourhumans.com. MOAS is a humanitarian organisation formed to assist migrants at sea. For more information: http://www.moas.eu Proceeds from the Glasgow show go to ‘The Invisibles’ a Glasgow homeless charity: http://seetheinvisibles.co.uk’
The shows are the first club dates the band have played since 2004. The full list of dates:
6/9 – Glasgow Academy
7/9 – Nottingham Rock City
8/9 – Bristol Academy
10/9 – London Electric Ballroom
11/9 – Manchester Ritz
The new Libertines album Anthems For Doomed Youth is released on Friday the 11th September.
