The Irish rap trio Kneecap, who sparked controversy after displaying anti-Israel messages during their recent performance at California's Coachella Festival, defended their stance on Thursday despite mounting backlash.
During their shows at the festival, the band projected messages on a large screen reading, “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people” and “F*** Israel, Free Palestine.” Band members also led the crowd in chants of “Free Palestine.”
“Our statements are not violent,” the group said in a statement to AFP, adding, “killing 20,000 children is. Or executing 15 doctors and burying them with their ambulances,” referring to an incident in Rafah a month ago that became widely known as the “paramedic killings.”
Following an internal investigation into the incident, the IDF’s chief of staff took the rare step of dismissing a deputy commander from the Golani reconnaissance unit and issuing a formal reprimand to the brigade commander who had ordered the crushing of the ambulances. However, the investigation found “no evidence of executions or the tying up of bodies,” calling such claims a “blood libel.” It concluded that six of the 15 killed were identified as Hamas operatives.
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Kneecap’s remarks triggered widespread reactions on social media. Among the critics was British TV personality Sharon Osbourne, wife of rocker Ozzy Osbourne, who said the group’s rhetoric amounted to “incitement to hatred.” She called on U.S. authorities to revoke the band’s work visas, accusing them of turning Coachella into a “fan club for Hamas.” Commentators on Fox News echoed the criticism, accusing the band of importing “Nazi Germany ideology” to America.
In response, Kneecap pushed back against the Fox News criticism, sharing messages of support they said they had received from fans and claiming they had gotten thousands of such messages alongside “hundreds of violent Zionist threats.” They also noted that nearly all tickets for their planned U.S. tour in October were already sold out.