The Irish-language rap trio Kneecap have defended their pro-Palestine activism after facing censure, a court case, and the loss of their US booking agent. The band, who performed at Coachella in April, displayed messages including 'Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people' and 'Fuck Israel. Free Palestine' during their set. Member Mo Chara told the audience: 'The Palestinians have nowhere to go. It's their fucking home and they're bombing them from the skies. If you're not calling it a genocide, what the fuck are you calling it?'
Following the Coachella performance, Kneecap's US booking agent dropped them, Fox News compared their statements to 'Nazi Germany', and several summer shows were cancelled. Two videos from 2023 and 2024 resurfaced showing the band saying 'The only good Tory is a dead Tory' and 'Up Hezbollah, up Hamas'. The band apologised for the comment about MPs, saying they 'never intended to cause you hurt', and rejected 'any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual'. They described the recirculation of the videos as a 'smear campaign' with footage 'deliberately taken out of all context'.
British counter-terrorism police investigated the band and later charged Mo Chara with terror offences for allegedly brandishing a Hezbollah flag during a November 2024 London show. Hezbollah is a proscribed terrorist organisation in the UK. In response, artists including Massive Attack, Paul Weller and Primal Scream signed a letter advocating for free speech and alleging that Kneecap were victims of a 'campaign of intimidation'.
Ahead of their Glastonbury appearance, which has been criticised by Prime Minister Keir Starmer and Commons leader Lucy Powell, the band remain unfazed. Mo Chara said: 'Maybe visas get revoked, you're not allowed in America again, it's not ideal – but Jesus Christ, there's people being bombed from the fucking skies, and people being starved to death.' He added that if their visa applications fail, 'I can go about my day without having to worry about my next meal or my family being bombed.'
Regarding the Hezbollah flag incident, Mo Chara said: 'It's a joke. I'm a character. Shit is thrown on stage all the time. If I'm supposed to know every fucking thing that's thrown on stage... I'd be in Mensa.' He argued that the videos were not an issue until the band said 'Free Palestine' at Coachella, and that opponents 'went and combed through eight years of a career... they're really scraping the bottom of the barrel'.
