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Irish rap trio Kneecap have been banned from entering Hungary, where they are due to perform at one of Europe’s largest music festivals.
The Belfast-based band – who regularly display pro-Palestinian messages during their gigs – were to take the stage at the six-day Sziget Festival, which begins on 6 August.
Hungarian authorities have accused the band of using antisemitic hate speech and expressing praise for the militant group Hamas.
They have caused controversy in recent months, including at Glastonbury Festival, where member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – who performs under the name Mo Chara – accused Israel of committing war crimes.
He is due to reappear in Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 20 August to face a terrorism-related charge for allegedly displaying a Hezbollah flag at an earlier gig.
He denies the offence, with the band calling the accusations a “carnival of distraction” from the war in Gaza.
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Kneecap performing on the West Holts Stage at Glastonbury (PA Wire)
“Hungary’s government has moved to ban Kneecap from entering the country and performing at Sziget … citing antisemitic hate speech and open praise for Hamas and Hezbollah as justification,” government spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs wrote in a post on X.
Mr Kovacs later posted the official letters from immigration authorities banning the band for three years, claiming that their entry would “seriously threaten national security”.
Representatives of Kneecap did not immediately reply to requests for comment.
The band has said previously that its members do not support Hamas or Hezbollah, and that it condemns “all attacks on civilians, always”.
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Kneecap outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court in June (AFP/Getty)
Hungary’s government had already asked festival organisers to drop Kneecap from the line-up at the week-long event, which draws several hundred thousand music lovers to an island in the River Danube each year.
More than 150 artists and cultural figures, including Academy Award-winning director Laszlo Nemes Jeles, have also signed a petition protesting against Kneecap’s participation.
Sziget organisers, who said they had not been notified of the government’s decision, have resisted the calls to scrap Kneecap’s planned performance on 11 August.
“Our festival remains true to what we have consistently achieved over the past 30 years: there is no place for hatred, incitement, prejudice, or any form of racism or antisemitism,” they said in a statement last week.
Sziget’s other performers this year include Post Malone, Shawn Mendes and Charli XCX.