Scandal at Glastonbury: calls for the murder of the Israeli military were shouted from the stage

The legendary Glastonbury Rock Festival (UK) this year was involved in a scandal over the musicians of the Bob Vylan duo, who shouted calls for the killing of the Israeli army. The festival was held from 25 to 29 June in Somerset County, the event was broadcast live by the BBC media corporation.

Initially, it was stated that the performance of the Irish rap group Kneecap, which had previously been criticized for its pro-Palestinian position, would not be broadcast. However, it was still not possible to avoid political statements from the Glastonbury stage.

During a performance on June 28, one of the members of the British duo Bob Vylan, who calls himself Bobby Vylan, began chanting anti-Israeli slogans.

An inscription appeared on the backdrop of the stage behind the artist's back: "Liberate Palestine. The UN called it genocide. The BBC calls it a 'conflict'." Vilan started a crowd of spectators, as a result, together with him, people shouted Free Palestine and Death to the IDF (Death to the IDF (Israeli Army)), waving Palestinian flags.

The BBC had to apologize for the performance of the duo, the company was accused of not interrupting the broadcast.

The organizers of the festival said the duo's musicians "crossed the line."

"We urgently remind everyone who participated in the organization of the festival that in Glastonbury has no place for anti—Semitism, hate speech or incitement to violence," the organizers added.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that the BBC should explain how such slogans could get on the air. The Minister of Culture Lisa Nandy made a similar rhetoric on behalf of the UK government, demanding an urgent explanation from the head of the media corporation.

"The team dealt with the situation live, but in retrospect, we should have stopped the broadcast during the performance. We regret that this did not happen," the BBC said.

The corporation also added that they respect freedom of speech, but oppose incitement to violence.

Deputy Minister of the Interior Chris Philp expressed confidence that it is necessary to investigate not only the slogans of the musicians, but also the actions of the BBC "for offenses in accordance with the Law on Public Order." Somerset Police called on the public to refrain from further reporting on this incident, "an investigation is already underway."

After the Glastonbury festival, Bob Vylan musicians were supposed to go on a tour of the USA, but Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said that the tour would not take place because the duo's American visas had been canceled.

"Foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome in our country," he wrote on his page on the social network X.

At the same time, Bobby Whelan posted a video message on his social network page.

"I said what I said," he stressed. He did not speak specifically about his performance at Glastonbury, but defended political activism in general, believing that it is important for young people to see such actions.

As EADaily reported, a year earlier, British street artist Banksy presented his new performance at Glastonbury. In addition, the star of the trilogy "Back to the Future" Michael J. Fox, who has been struggling with Parkinson's disease for many years, took the stage in a wheelchair. He played a couple of songs with the band Coldplay.