LONDON: British public broadcaster the BBC apologised Monday for not pulling a live stream of a punk-rap group’s performance at the Glastonbury festival when they made anti-Israel remarks.
“With hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen,“ the broadcaster said of Bob Vylan’s show, in which the group led the crowds in chants of “Death to the IDF”, the initials of the Israeli military.
Prime Minister Keir Starmer said after there was “no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech”.
The BBC said that “millions of people” watched its coverage of the festival “but one performance within our livestreams included comments that were deeply offensive”.
“The BBC respects freedom of expression but stands firmly against incitement to violence,“ it added.
“The antisemitic sentiments expressed by Bob Vylan were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.”
Media watchdog Ofcom warned Monday that it was “very concerned” and that the BBC had questions to answer.
“We have been speaking to the BBC over the weekend and we are obtaining further information as a matter of urgency,“ it added.
Controversy descended on this year’s event before it even began over the inclusion of Irish rap trio Kneecap, one of whose members was recently charged under terror legislation.
During their show on Saturday, one Kneecap member wore a T-shirt dedicated to the Palestine Action Group, which is about to be banned under UK terror laws.
The chants about Israel’s military were led by Bob Vylan’s frontman Bobby Vylan, and were broadcast live on the BBC.
Glastonbury’s organisers said the the comments had “very much crossed a line”.
“We are urgently reminding everyone involved in the production of the festival that there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence,“ the festival said in a statement.
Avon and Somerset police said Saturday that video evidence would be assessed “to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation”.
The incident has caused a diplomatic headache for the UK, with the Israel embassy issuing a statement saying “it was “deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival”.
Kneecap, which has made headlines in recent months with its pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel stance, also led crowds in chanting abuse against Prime Minister Starmer.
Starmer and other politicians had said the band should not perform after its member Liam O’Hanna, known by his stage name Mo Chara, was charged with a terror offence.
He appeared in court this month accused of having displayed a Hezbollah flag while saying “Up Hamas, Up Hezbollah” at a London concert last year. A video of the concert resurfaced and caused controversy.
The Iran-backed Lebanese group Hezbollah and the Palestinian militants Hamas are banned in the UK, where it is an offence to express support for them.
