London (AP) Rap-punk duo Bob Vylanon denied accusations of antisemitism on Tuesday, following remarks made onstage at the Glastonbury Festival that led to a police inquiry and drew criticism from the BBC, MPs, and festival organizers.
In a statement, the band claimed that it was being singled out for criticism of the Gaza War.
When frontman Bob Vylan led the crowd in cries of “Death to the Israel Defense Forces” during the band’s performance at the festival in southwest England on Saturday, police are looking into whether a crime was committed.
The BBC apologized for livestreaming the antisemitic views, and the British government denounced the chanting as egregious hate speech. The musicians’ visas were canceled by U.S. authorities.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations have been held in numerous capital cities and on college campuses as a result of Israel’s assault against Hamasin Gaza, which has heightened tensions globally. Critics claim that Israel exploits such labels to stifle opponents, while Israel and some of its allies have called the demonstrations antisemitic.
“We are not for the death of Jews, Arabs, or any other race or group of people,” Bob Vylan wrote in an Instagram statement. We support the removal of a brutal military apparatus. a device that has largely destroyed Gaza.
The pair continued by accusing us of detracting from the narrative and saying, “We are being targeted for speaking up.”
Following the anti-IDF shouts, the BBC is being pressured to explain why it did not stop the performance’s broadcast. Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis of Britain claimed that the BBC’s broadcast of hateful anti-Semitic content was a national embarrassment.
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The fact that one just needs to disguise their overt calls for violence and hatred as edgy political commentary for the general public to not only fail to recognize it for what it is, but also to applaud, chant, and celebrate it should worry all good people, he wrote on X.
Police in Avon and Somerset said they are looking into the performance by Irish-language hip-hop group Kneecap, whose pro-Palestinian views have also drawn criticism, as well as that of Bob Vylan. Liam G. Annaidh, a member of Kneecap, has been charged under the Terrorism Act of Britain with aiding a prohibited group for reportedly displaying a Hezbollah flag during a London concert last year.
According to the health ministry in the Hamas-run territory, Israel has murdered almost 56,000 people in Gaza since the conflict started in October 2023 with a Hamas strike on Israel that claimed about 1,200 lives. The European Union, Canada, and the United States have all classified Hamas as a terrorist group.
