Kneecap speak out on terror arrest attempt to shut the band down ahead of Glastonbury and fight for Gaza at Wide Awake headline set
Kneecap's set at Wide Awake Festival saw them speak out about being silenced ahead of their summer set at Glastonbury.
Kneecap‘s defiant headline set at Wide Awake – which came only days after Mo Chara was charged with a terror offence – saw them speak out about the ongoing conflict in Gaza and being silenced ahead of Glastonbury.
Earlier this week, Mo Chara was charged by the Metropolitan Police for allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah at a gig last year. The band have denied supporting either Hamas or Hezbollah, and stated that they would not incite violence against any individuals. They have also argued that the footage of the moment had been taken out of context.
AdvertisementThe Belfast hip-hop trio had previously called the legal action against 27-year-old musician (real name Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh) a “carnival of distraction”, and have maintained it was “political policing” and that they were not the story, rather, “Genocide is”.
Those comments were echoed at last night’s (May 23) Brockwell Park gig, where Chara took to the stage alongside Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí to say the charge was designed to “silence” them ahead of their performance at Glastonbury this summer.
“I went for an interview with the counter-terror police and within days they came to a verdict that they were going to charge me,” he said at the south London event. “Never has it been that quick.
“And the reason it was that quick was because Glastonbury is just around the corner. They’re trying to silence us from speaking onstage at Glastonbury the way we did at Coachella. Fuck them.”
RecommendedKneecap’s statements in support of Palestine at Coachella 2025 saw them project slogans including “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people” behind them on stage, in a move that supposedly “blindsided” festival organisers. Following that, counter-terror police began to assess footage from a London performance last November, resulting in the recent charge.
“Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí from Belfast and Derry are not the story,” the rapper continued. “We are being made an example of. The Israeli lobbyists are trying to prove to other artists that if you speak out, we’re gonna hit you where it hurts most. They’re trying to cancel gigs and they’re trying to cancel my freedom of travel.”
It comes as the UN said on Friday that Gaza was in the “cruellest phase” of war, with 9,000 trucks’ worth of aid ready at the border for the Palestinian territory.
According to Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry, at least 53,822 people have now been killed since Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas’s cross-border attack on 7 October 2023, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage.
AdvertisementYesterday saw multiple speeches addressing the humanitarian crisis, including one by Jeremy Corbyn ahead of Nadine Shah‘s set.
In a statement that was met with roars of “Free Palestine” by the crowd at Kneecap’s set, Mo Chara said: “The fact that I’m speaking to this amount of people, and I assume the majority of people agree, shows that we’re on the right side of history.”
The band also nodded to his upcoming appearance at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June, joking onstage: “If anybody’s about on June 18 … we’re all going to gather outside the Westminster court to show support.”
Another member chimed in: “Anybody who’s free on June 18 – get a big bag of ket and we’ll go on the steps of Westminster.”
The band later thanked fans for their vocal support on Instagram, after warning them at the show things nearly didn’t go ahead. “They tried to stop this gig,” one member can be heard telling fans on stage. “Honestly, lads, you have no idea how close we were to being pulled off this gig.”
The ensuing controversy has seen numerous live shows and festival appearances cancelled, as well as the band being dropped by their booking agent. They also faced extensive criticism from Sharon Osbourne, who branded them as “pathetic” and urged for their US visas to be revoked.
Despite the backlash, over 100 artists – including Pulp, Fontaines D.C., IDLES, Massive Attack, Paul Weller, Primal Scream, Enter Shikari, English Teacher, The Pogues, Lankum, Toddla T, Sleaford Mods and Thin Lizzy – all came together to sign an open letter, supporting the right to freedom of expression for musicians.
Massive Attack have also been vocal in their backing for Kneecap too, issuing a statement urging that the focus to remain on what they call a “genocide” against the Palestinian people, rather than debating about the band.
At time of writing, the band’s appearances at Glastonbury, TRNSMT and other European festivals remain intact. Their huge Belfast show with Fontaines D.C. recently sold out in just over half an hour, despite calls from the DUP to have it axed.
Back in April, the band took to X/Twitter to clarify that they condemned “all attacks on civilians, always. It is never okay. We know this more than anyone, given our nation’s history.
“We also reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual. Ever,” they continued, following news police were assessing a second video from one of their gigs, which purportedly showed the group calling for the death of Conservative MPs.
“An extract of footage, deliberately taken out of all context, is now being exploited and weaponised, as if it were a call to action.”
In their NME The Cover story in June 2024, Mo Chara touched on being anti-violence, saying: “Obviously I can’t speak for what happened before me,” sharing his sympathy for what past generations of Irishmen went through. “But we don’t support violence as that doesn’t make any sense any more.”
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