Kneecap respond as Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch call for Glastonbury ban: “You know what’s ‘not appropriate’ Keir? Arming a fucking genocide…”

Kneecap have responded to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch calling for them to be banned from performing at Glastonbury 2025.

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The Irish hip-hop trio are set to perform at this year’s edition of the Worthy Farm festival, which will be held in Somerset between June 25 and 29. Their set is scheduled for the West Holts stage on the Saturday and will take place at 4pm.

Recently, organisers confirmed that the band will remain on the line-up despite pressures from MPs, and following a police investigation into the band after they both allegedly displayed a Hezbollah flag at a show last November and made controversial comments about members of parliament while on stage.

The incident in November recently led to member Mo Chara being charged with a terror offence, for which he appeared in court earlier this week and was released on unconditional bail.

Since then, Starmer has commented on the band’s upcoming Glastonbury performance, saying, when asked by The Sun if they should still play: “No, I don’t, and I think we need to come down really clearly on this.

“This is about the threats that shouldn’t be made, I won’t say too much because there’s a court case on, but I don’t think that’s appropriate.”

Now, Kneecap have responded, sharing a screenshot of Starmer’s interview and writing: “You know what’s “not appropriate” Keir?! Arming a fucking genocide… Fuck The Sun and solidarity with [Palestinian Action].”

Their post is referencing the pro-Palestinian activist group that recently targeted RAF Brize Norton and damaged two military aircraft. The government now plans to proscribe the group, which would effectively brand it as a terrorist organisation.

Badenoch made similar remarks regarding the trio’s Glastonbury set, posting on X/Twitter: “The BBC should not be showing Kneecap propaganda. One Kneecap band member is currently on bail, charged under the Terrorism Act,” she wrote. “As a publicly funded platform, the BBC should not be rewarding extremism.”

Her comments come after the BBC said it will continue with its planned coverage of the band’s set at West Holts, although it may be edited to coincide with editorial guidelines.

The band have also received support from fellow musicians, including Johnny Marr, who recently shared a statement in response to calls for their set to be pulled, which said: “I stand with my audience and fellow musicians who call for an immediate end to the atrocities and a free Palestine.”

Campaign group Love Music Hate Racism is among those expressing their support for Kneecap, saying via social media statement: “Anyone trying to silence them, or get them pulled from shows, is on the wrong side of history”.

Fontaines D.C.’s Grian Chatten, also recently claimed that the terror charge brought against Mo Chara was “a witch hunt”.

On Wednesday (June 18), Mo Chara appeared at London’s Westminster Magistrates’ Court, after after urging fans to show their support for him at Westminster with “a big bag of ket” – and posting billboards across London with the message: “More Blacks, More Dogs, More Irish, Mo Chara”.

He was charged with a terror offence in May for allegedly displaying a flag in support of the proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah at their O2 Kentish Town Forum gig last year. The band have denied supporting either Hamas or Hezbollah, arguing that the footage of the moment had been taken out of context.

The band have received a huge wave of support from hundreds of artists, including Pulp, Fontaines D.C., IDLES, Massive Attack, Tom Morello, Brian Eno, CMAT, Paloma Faith, Kae Tempest and Amyl & The Sniffers.

Paul Weller was also spotted amongst the many protesters earlier this week, some of whom were holding signs reading ‘Free Palestine, ‘Free Mo Chara’, and ‘Defend Kneecap: Drop The Charges’.

Inside the court, Og O hAnnaidh simply confirmed his name, date of birth and Belfast address before he was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing on August 20.

While there has been pressure from some MPs to have Kneecap dropped from their festival appearances this summer, there has also been mounting pressure from many artists and creatives for Prime Minister Keir Starmer to “end UK complicity” in Gaza.

As well as playing Glastonbury, Kneecap are due to support Fontaines D.C. at their huge Finsbury Park show this July, and play their biggest England show to date at London’s Wembley Arena in September.

The band used their recent headline set at London’s Wide Awake festival to further echo their support for Palestine, and speak out against efforts to shut the band down ahead of their Glastonbury appearance.

Elsewhere, they recently announced the official release of ‘The Recap’, along with news of their “biggest ever European headline show” in Amsterdam.

The post Kneecap respond as Keir Starmer and Kemi Badenoch call for Glastonbury ban: “You know what’s ‘not appropriate’ Keir? Arming a fucking genocide…” appeared first on NME.