WATCH: Anti-IDF Glastonbury Moment That May Ban Punk Duo From U.S.
The Trump administration is considering revoking the visa of British rapper Pascal Robinson-Foster, frontman of the London punk-rap duo Bob Vylan, following a storm of criticism over his “Death to the IDF” chant during a politically charged Glastonbury festival performance.
Robinson-Foster is set to tour the U.S. this fall alongside rapper Grandson. But that plan now hangs in the balance after calls from Republican lawmakers and pro-Israel campaigners to block his entry.
The controversy erupted during the duo’s Saturday set on Glastonbury’s West Holts Stage, broadcast live by the BBC.
As the performance unfolded, a screen behind the pair declared: “Free Palestine. United Nations have called it a genocide. The BBC calls it a ‘conflict.'”
Moments later, the band led the crowd in chants of “Free, Free Palestine” and “Death, Death to the IDF.”
A senior State Department official reportedly told The Daily Wire: “As a reminder, under the Trump Administration, the US government will not issue visas to any foreigner who supports terrorists.”
Rep. Randy Fine (R-FA) signaled he was “on it” while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) ripped the performance as “truly sick” and the “base of the Democrat Party.”
In the U.K., Prime Minister Keir Starmer called the chants “appalling” and several other lawmakers have condemned the clip.
The incident has also thrown the BBC, which broadcasts the event, into the political firing line days after the broadcaster quietly dropped Irish rap group Kneecap from its coverage over one member’s ongoing terror charges.
Media watchdog Ofcom, the UK’s independent media regulator that’s charged with enforcing standards similar to the FCC, announced on Monday that it was investigating the broadcaster’s decision to carry the chant during the group’s performance on Saturday.
The watchdog said in a statement: “We are very concerned about the live stream of this performance, and the BBC clearly has questions to answer.”
It comes after Avon and Somerset Police also confirmed they are assessing videos of Bob Vylan and Kneecap’s performances at the festival.
Robinson-Foster remained defiant to the backlash and defended his remarks in calls for “a change in foreign policy.”
“I said what I said,” he added.
Leo Terrell, chair of the Department of Justice’s Task Force to Combat Antisemitism, said his “first call” on Monday would be to Secretary of State Marco Rubio to block Vylan’s entry to the U.S.
“These abhorrent chants, which included calls for the death of members of the Israeli Defense Forces, are abhorrent and have no place in any civil society,” Terrell told The Daily Wire, adding that the task force would contact the State Department “to determine what measures are available to address the situation and to prevent the promotion of violent antisemitic rhetoric in the United States.”
Watch above via BBC.
