UK government blasts 'Death to IDF' chants at Glastonbury music festival

The British government on Sunday condemned the recent “Death to IDF” chants led by the rapper duo Bob Vylan at the widely attended Glastonbury music festival, which draws approximately 200,000 local and international visitors each year.

During his set, Vylan called for the death of Israeli soldiers and chanted, “Free free Palestine” and “From the River to the Sea, Palestine must be, will be inshallah will be free,” using a popularized slogan often interpreted as a call for Israel’s destruction.

Video footage from the event showed the audience repeating Vylan’s calls for the death of Israeli soldiers and to wipe the Jewish state off the map. The incident was broadcast live by the BBC.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer condemned Vylan’s anti-Israel rhetoric, emphasizing that “there is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech.”

“I said that Kneecap should not be given a platform and that goes for any other performers making threats or inciting violence,” the prime minister continued. “The BBC needs to explain how these scenes came to be broadcast."

A British government spokesperson revealed that London’s Culture Secretary Lisa Nandy had asked the BBC director general for an explanation of how Vylan’s hateful performance was allowed to be broadcast. 

“We strongly condemn the threatening comments made by Bob Vylan at Glastonbury,” the spokesperson stated. 

British Health Secretary Wes Streeting voiced similar concerns. “I thought it’s appalling, to be honest, and I think the BBC and Glastonbury have got questions to answer about how we saw such a spectacle on our screens.” 

The Glastonbury Festival organizers responded by arguing that they were also “appalled” by the antisemitic chants during Vylan's performance. 

“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,” the festival stated.

The festival organizers appeared to avoid responsibility by distancing themselves from Vylan. 

“With almost 4,000 performances at Glastonbury 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.” 

Amid growing backlash, the BBC defended its handling of the incident, stating that it had issued a warning about “very strong and discriminatory language” during the concert’s livestream. A BBC spokesperson acknowledged that some of Vylan’s remarks were “deeply offensive” and emphasized that there are “no plans to make the performance available on demand.” 

The British network later explicitly recognized the incident as antisemitic.

“The team were dealing with a live situation but with hindsight, we should have pulled the stream during the performance. We regret this did not happen,” the BBC stated. 

On Monday, Vylan appeared to double down on his anti-Israel and antisemitic rhetoric, arguing that he was “inundated with messages of support and hatred.” 

The number of recorded antisemitic incidents in the United Kingdom reached record-high levels during the first half of 2024.

The British Community Security Trust (CST) reported close to 2,000 verified antisemitic cases during the first six months of 2024. 

The number of antisemitic incidents has surged across much of the West following the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas attack that killed 1,200 Israelis and resulted in the kidnapping of 251 Israelis into Gaza.