The organisers of Glastonbury have said they are “appalled” by comments made by Bob Vylan after the punk duo appeared to incite violence, something the festival said went against its ethos of “hope, unity, peace and love”.
At the West Holts stage on Saturday afternoon, the London group led a chant of “death, death to the IDF”, referring to the Israel Defense Forces.
Describing himself as a “violent punk”, the frontman of the duo, Bobby Vylan, said: “Sometimes we have to get our message across with violence because that’s the only language some people speak, unfortunately.”
Their set, which was before that of the Irish rap trio Kneecap, was broadcast live on theBBCbut has since been removed from its streaming services. A BBC spokesperson previously said some of Bob Vylan’s comments were “deeply offensive”.
A decisionhad been madebeforethe Kneecap performancenot to screen it live, due to fears it would breach “editorial guidelines” on impartiality.
Meanwhile, Avon andSomersetpolice said the force was investigating both performances to see if any offences had been committed.
Emily Eavis, the organiser of Glastonbury, issued a joint statement condemning Bob Vylan’s words, writing: “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 atGlastonbury 2025, 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 tacit endorsement of their opinions and beliefs.
“However, we are appalled by the statements made from the West Holts stage by Bob Vylan yesterday. Their chants very much crossed a line and 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.”
Keir Starmer, the UK prime minister, told the Telegraph: “There is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech.I said thatKneecap should not be given a platform and that goes for any other performers making threats or inciting violence. The BBC needs to explain how these scenes came to be broadcast.”
During the festival, artists from the full cross-section of the music scene showed their support for the Palestinian cause.
Cmatandthe Libertinesshouted “Free Palestine” during their sets – as did Gary Lineker at the end of his talk – whileJoy Crookes, TV on the Radio, Sorry and Paloma Faith all had Palestinian flags or keffiyeh scarves on stage.
During her set early Sunday afternoon, the musicianNadine Shah performedin front of a backdrop showing the destruction in Gaza. She told the crowd, many of whom were waving Palestinian flags: “I just don’t like seeing people being killed.”
Shah read an open letter from Artists for Palestine UK in support of theactivist group Palestine Action, whom the home secretary, Yvette Cooper,has planned to proscribeas a terror organisation, if a Commons vote goes her way next week.
It read: “Palestine Action is intervening to stop a genocide. It is acting to save life. We deplore the government’s decision to proscribe it. Labelling non-violent direct action as terrorism is an abuse of language and an attack on democracy.
“The real threat to the life of the nation comes not from Palestine Action, but from the home secretary’s efforts to ban it. We call on the government to withdraw its proscription of Palestine action and to stop arming Israel.”
Shah added: “And if I read this out after 4 July, I can potentially be prosecuted for that.”