The BBC tried to skirt controversial Irish band Kneecap by not showing the group’s Glastonbury set as part of its live wall-to-wall Glastonbury coverage today.
However, a group the corporation streamed on iplayer instead of Kneecap had some contentious comments of their own.
British duo Bob Vylan led thousands of crowd-members in chants of “Death, Death To The IDF” [Isreal Defence Force] and “Free, Free Palestine” during their set. The packed crowd was studded with Palestinian flags.
The punk duo, who merge grime, punk rock and hip hop, also reiterated the controversial slogan: “From the river to the sea, Palestine must be, will be, free.”
The group had a large message for fans on stage: “Free Palestine. United Nations have called it a genocide. The BBC calls it a “conflict”.”
The BBC has yet to comment on the performance, which has inevitably sparked both outcry and applause on social media.
Kneecap performed its set to a capacity crowd shortly after Bob Vylan and led the crowd in chants of “Fuck Keir Starmer” and “Free Palestine”. The UK Prime Minister had recently said it was “inappropriate” for the band to play at the festival given the recent legal issues the band has encountered.
Kneecap band member Mo Chara is currently facing terror charges in the UK for allegedly showing support for Hamas and Hezbollah, which are both considered terror organizations by the UK government. This came a few months after counter-terrorism police said they were assessing videos of a bandmember allegedly telling fans at a gig: “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.”
In a Guardian interview yesterday, the band said they were “in character” when displaying a Hezbollah flag. “S**t is thrown on stage all the time. If I’m supposed to know every f***ing thing that’s thrown on stage… I’d be in Mensa, Jesus Christ,” said Mo Chara, AKA Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh.
Earlier today, the BBC confirmed that Neil Young’s set will also be shown on TV. Young had the previous day said he did not want his set to be on the BBC.
