The US State Department has revoked the visas of members of Bob Vylan, a British rap punk group who led crowds to chant “death” against the Israeli military at a UK music festival this weekend.
“The (State Department) has revoked the US visas for the members of the Bob Vylan band in light of their hateful tirade at Glastonbury, including leading the crowd in death chants. Foreigners who glorify violence and hatred are not welcome visitors to our country,” Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau said in a post on X Monday.
The group was slated to go on a US tour beginning in late October, according to a post on Instagram.
The US State Department has instituted an aggressive visa restriction and revocation policy for alleged support of terrorism and anti-Semitism.
The ban comes after rapper Bobby Vylan took to Glastonbury Festival’s third-biggest West Holts Stage on Saturday, shouting “Free, free Palestine,” before leading crowds to chants against the Israeli military. Video showed the rapper shouting into the mic, “Alright, but have you heard this one though? Death, death to the IDF (Israel Defense Forces).”
The artist also performed in front of a screen that displayed a message which read: “United Nations have called it a genocide. The BBC calls it a ‘conflict,’” referring to the UK’s public broadcaster that showed the festival live.
In a Sunday Instagram post captioned “I said what I said,” Bobby Vylan said he had received “messages of both support and hatred” following the performance.
“Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place,” the post read. “As we grow older and our fire possibly starts to dim under the suffocation of adult life and all its responsibilities, it is incredibly important that we inspire future generations to pick up the torch that was passed to us.”
Bob Vylan’s chants at the festival have also prompted outcry among top British officials, and British police are reviewing video footage of their set. UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that “there is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech.”
The Israeli Embassy in the UK said it was “deeply disturbed” by what it called “inflammatory and hateful” rhetoric at the festival.
On Monday, the BBC admitted that “with hindsight” Vylan’s performance should have been pulled from air during the performance, saying that the corporation “respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence.”
“The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves,” it added.
