Kneecap have issued a statement clarifying that they do not and have never supported Hamas or Hezbollah, despite shouting “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” during a show last year.
They also insist that they would never seek to incite violence against any politician, despite footage of a gig where one member of the group declared “kill your local MP”. In reference to that comment, they also apologise to the families of Jo Cox and David Amess, two MPs who were murdered while in office.
However, despite distancing themselves from the past remarks and apologising to the Cox and Amess families for being seen to make light of physically attacking MPs, the group remain forthright and outspoken in their statement. In it they insist that “establishment figures” desperate to “silence” the band are taking past remarks out of context “to manufacture moral hysteria”.
Kneecap issued the statement as politicians from all sides criticised their past on-stage remarks, which have been unearthed follow the controversy surrounding the group’s recent Coachella performances, where they projected strongly pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel statements onto screens.
At least some of those politicians are now calling for other festivals to cancel Kneecap sets and for the American government to deny them visas for planned shows in the US later this year.
The group’s new statement is forthright from the off, declaring “they want you to believe words are more harmful than genocide”. Building on earlier claims that they are the victims of a smear campaign, they say “establishment figures, desperate to silence us, have combed through hundreds of hours of footage and interviews, extracting a handful of words from months or years ago, to manufacture moral hysteria”.
Kneecap using their platform to support the Palestinian cause, and speak out about the situation in Gaza, has won the group plenty of praise as well as plenty of criticism. However, many of their supporters would prefer they carefully distinguish between supporting the Palestinians and supporting Hamas and Hezbollah, which are defined as “proscribed international terrorist groups” by the UK government.
Although their Coachella set did not include any messaging suggesting support for either of those groups, critics quickly honed in on the “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” remark made on-stage during a 2024 show, some insisting that that constituted public support, possibly in breach of the Terrorism Act 2000
Kneecap’s new statement deals with that head on. “Let us be unequivocal”, they say, “we do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all attacks on civilians, always. It is never okay”.
They also deal with the “kill your local MP” remark, which was made at an earlier show along with a line criticising the then Conservative government by declaring that “the only good Tory is a dead Tory”.
In the new statement, they “reject any suggestion that we would seek to incite violence against any MP or individual”, arguing that “an extract of footage, deliberately taken out of all context, is now being exploited and weaponised, as if it were a call to action”.
Police have confirmed they are investigating both the “kill your local MP” and “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” incidents, with officers having to decide whether - in the context of a show by a contentious rap group - either remarks are grounds for prosecution. Criminal proceedings could prove problematic when the group seek visas to perform in the US and elsewhere, though the controversial remarks alone could be an issue.
Kneecap’s statement subsequently argues that the current outrage over past isolated on-stage remarks is simply “a transparent effort to derail the real conversation”. They then repeat their strong criticism of Israel in the context of Gaza and of the UK government over its current policies in relation to the conflict. This, they argue, “is where real anger and outrage should be directed towards”.
Addressing the Cox and Amess families, they say “we send our heartfelt apologies, we never intended to cause you hurt. Kneecap’s message has always been and remains one of love, inclusion and hope”.
The group’s statement then concludes, “suddenly, days after calling out the US administration at Coachella to applause and solidarity, there is an avalanche of outrage and condemnation by the political classes of Britain. The real crimes are not in our performances; the real crimes are the silence and complicity of those in power. Shame on them”.
It remains to be seen if any UK festivals bow to political pressure to drop Kneecap from their line-ups, with TRNSMT and Glastonbury among those being urged to remove the group from their bills. The BBC is also likely to be under pressure over whether or not it broadcasts any Glastonbury performance.
Promoters may well be hoping that the group’s statement - while forthright and in itself pretty contentious - nevertheless addresses the past on-stage remarks that were harder to defend, and that things will calm down a little taking the Kneecap controversies out of the media spotlight. We shall see.