Rap trio Kneecap investigated over ‘kill your MP’ video
Charlotte McLaughlin |
A Belfast rap trio is being investigated by counter-terrorism police after videos emerged allegedly showing the band calling for the deaths of MPs and shouting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah”.
The group called Kneecap has had several gigs cancelled after footage appeared to show one of them shouting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” in November of 2024.
Video from November 2023 also appeared to show one member of the group saying: “The only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP.”
The group apologised on Monday to the families of murdered MPs but claimed footage of the incident had been “exploited and weaponised”.
They also said they have “never supported” Hamas or Hezbollah, which are both banned organisations in the UK.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has called for Kneecap to be banned while other politicians pushed for the group to be dropped from the Glastonbury Festival.
In a statement posted on Instagram on Monday, the group, comprising Liam Og O Hannaidh, Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh, addressed the families of Sir David Amess and Jo Cox, saying “we never intended to cause you hurt”, and that they “reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual”.
“Kneecap’s message has always been – and remains – one of love, inclusion, and hope,” it added.
“This is why our music resonates across generations, countries, classes and cultures and has brought hundreds of thousands of people to our gigs. No smear campaign will change that.”
Brendan Cox, whose wife was murdered in 2016, called the statement “only half an apology” in an interview with BBC Radio Ulster. He said the band did not grapple “enough with the gravity” of what they had allegedly said.
The daughter of Sir David, who was stabbed to death in 2021, suggested the trio had been “badly advised”.
Katie Amess said the statement was “deflection and excuses and gaslighting”, and that it would be “very dangerous” for the group to perform at Glastonbury.
Following the investigation being launched, she also said their “rhetoric is not only abhorrent but poses a direct threat to the safety and well-being of elected officials and the democratic institutions they represent”.
In a joint statement, artists including Pulp, Paul Weller, former BBC Radio 1 DJ Annie Mac and Primal Scream have defended the band, and said there is a “clear, concerted attempt to censor and ultimately deplatform” Kneecap.
It said politicians are “strategically concocting moral outrage over the stage utterings of a young punk band” while ignoring a “genocide” in Gaza, following the band calling attention to the war at Coachella.
Meanwhile, their scheduled performance at the Eden Project in Cornwall has been axed, while ticket websites for three gigs in Germany said the shows in the country have been cancelled.
On Wednesday, the Board of Deputies of British Jews wrote a letter to the Glastonbury founder Sir Michael Eavis calling for the festival to remove Kneecap from the event.
“Words and images like this matter – they have an effect – and awarding those who make these statements with a platform to perform risks making these views appear more acceptable and even accepted,” Andrew Gilbert, the vice president of the board, said.
Kneecap has been contacted for comment.
PA
