Glastonbury 'appalled' by Bob Vylan IDF chants claiming singer 'crossed the line'
Glastonbury Festival has released a statement to express its distaste for the anti-Israel comments made by punk duo Bob Vylan vocalist Bobby Vylan - whose real name is Pascal Robinson-Foster on Saturday.
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Vylan led chants of "free, free Palestine" and "death, death to the IDF [Israel Defense Forces]" during their Glastonbury set at the festival yesterday as they condemned Israel’s ongoing assault on Gaza.
The festival organisers have released a statement to say they "very much crossed a line", and "there is no place at Glastonbury for antisemitism, hate speech or incitement to violence".
During the chant, crowds joined in, and made calls to “free, free Palestine".
Footage of their set is now being investigated by Avon and Somerset Police to see whether any offences may have been committed.
Read more: Wes Streeting brands 'death to the IDF' Glastonbury chant a 'publicity stunt' as festival says it 'crossed the line'
Read more: Who are Bob Vylan? The duo being investigated by police for controversial anti-IDF chants at Glastonbury
The official statement from Glastonbury Festival read: "As a festival, we stand against all forms of war and terrorism. We will always believe in - and actively campaign for - hope, unity, peace and love.
"With almost 4,000 performances [on site] there will inevitably be artists and speakers appearing on our stages whose views we do not share, and a performer's presence here should never be seen as a tactic endorsement of their opinions and beliefs."
Health Sec Wes Streeting has exclusively told LBC's Lewis Goodall, said that "publicity stunts" like the chants at Glastonbury take away from the "horrors" Palestinian people are currently facing in Gaza and the West Bank.
He said: “I’d never heard of this guy, I’m sure that played a part in why he did it.
“Those comments do no service to the Palestinian people, who just this week saw their villages in the West Bank attacked and burned by Israeli settler terrorists.”
He added that it was "ironic" the chants were made at a music festival, a similar setting to where over 370 people were killed at the Nova festival on October 7.
"This requires serious diplomacy," he said.
"It requires governments to work together to bring pressure to bear on Israel and Hamas to make sure the hostages are released, that the war is ended and that we create a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians. That's a serious approach that's needed, not these sorts of gimmicks and publicity stuff."