Sadiq Khan has paid tribute to victims of the harrowing Nova Music Festival massacre at a survivors exhibition after he was criticised for being a “no show”.
The Mayor of London toured the event where he met with survivors and families of victims who died in the horrific attack.
On 9 Jul, Khan made an appearance at the exhibition alongside Andrea Simon, the Victims’ Commissioner for London, as reported by Need To Know.
The visit came after he was publicly criticised for being a “no show” by the chair of the charity who had previously invited the Mayor to the event.
The Nova Exhibition London is a fully immersive experience that recreates the events of 7 Oct 2023 at The Nova Music Festival in Israel’s Negev desert.
413 young people were murdered, hundreds left injured and 44 were taken hostage into Gaza.
It is known as the deadliest attack on a music festival in history.
Sadiq Khan has now urged people across the nation to visit the exhibition.
The Mayor of London said: “This is not about what religion you belong to, which God you worship, what your politics are, what your views are on any particular issues.
“It’s about coming to see for yourself what happened on that day.
“But if you’re lucky, you’ll get the chance to meet a survivor and that experience will touch you, I promise.
“What’s quite clear is that these are people who went to that concert with nothing but love and joy, wanted a good time, and lost their lives.
“Others have survived. Their lives are never going to be the same again.
“And there are bereaved families whose lives will never be the same again.
“A number of things won’t leave me.
“The trainers of the kids, one of them 18 years old, the clothes, mobile phones.
“It just reminds you these are people and it’s always worth remembering that you may see a video film, you may read an article, but these are just human beings.
“But also what people are capable of doing is just horrific.
“And so what will stay with me is the hope and the optimism, but also the horror of what happened.”
Whilst speaking on the harrowing massacre he linked the events to the tragic Manchester Arena Bombing which shocked the nation.
During the tragic event, 23 people died including the suicide bomber. which took place on 22 May 2017.
Sadiq Khan said “One of the things I noticed, when you look at the photographs of those who lost their lives, you’ll see the diversity of ages, from kids as young as 18, in their 20s and their 30s and their 40s, even in their fifties, whose common theme was their love of trance music, their love of rave.
“And they left home, leaving their loved ones behind expecting to see them the next day, never to return and the same happened with traumatic incidents all across the world whether it’s the tragedy of the Ariana Grande concert where those mums and dads never saw their kids again, or the survivors who will be changed forever, it’s just a reminder of the things we’ve got in common.
“There are too many people around the world trying to divide people, divide communities and music, fun, congregation are the things we all share.”
Jam Press has approached the Mayor of London’s office for a comment.
