Israeli heavy metal band Orphaned Land's charity conference on February 25th in Istanbul raised money for victims of the October 23rd 2011 earthquake in the Van province of eastern Turkey. Guitarist Matti Svatizky explained how the band helps bring Turkish and Israeli people together. "This show that we are making here for the earthquake survivors, it is something that we want to contribute to Turkey from ourselves, as persons. You can also see it as something that we contribute as Israelis, not just as a rock band that came to play here, because of the tension that has been between the countries. It is important for us that Turkish people and our fans will see that human need comes before anything else, and we would like to help Turkish people anyway we can." Orphaned Land forms cultural ties between Turkey and Israel, regardless of the bilateral political situation. Band members did not hesitate to hold concerts in Turkey even when they were asked to cancel them following the decline in diplomatic ties between Turkey and Israel. Formed in 1991, and performing in Turkey since 2001, the band combines heavy metal music with prayers from the Quran, Jewish liturgy and other religious texts.

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