Mo Chara was charged with allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah at a gig last November, but was granted unconditional bail by a court earlier this month
Kneecap frontman Mo Chara defied the wishes of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and took to the stage at Glastonbury on Saturday, telling fans: “I’m a free man.” The PM had previously said the Irish rap trio should not be allowed to perform at the festival after Mo Chara, real name Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, was charged with a terror offence.
News clips criticising the hip hop band were blasted from the sound system before they walked onto the stage to huge cheers from the crowds at the West Holts stage.
Access to the area fields was closed around 45 minutes before their performance after groups of fans arrived to form a sea of Irish and Palestinian flags.
In the run up to the festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset, several politicians called for the group to be removed from the line-up and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said their performance would not be “appropriate”.
Ó hAnnaidh, 27, was charged with allegedly displaying a flag in support of proscribed terrorist organisation Hezbollah, while saying “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” at a gig in November last year.
He was cheered by hundreds of supporters at he arrived at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 18, alongside bandmates Naoise O Caireallain and JJ O Dochartaigh who wore Free Mo Chara T-shirts. He was released on unconditional bail until the next hearing at the same court on August 20.
In the run up to the festival at Worthy Farm in Somerset, several politicians called for the group to be removed from the line-up and Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said their performance would not be “appropriate”.
Earlier on Saturday, the BBC confirmed they would not be live-streaming the set but said the performance is likely to be made available on-demand later.
But despite the controversy, fans were so eager to see the band that they began setting up camp well before they took to the stage, forcing it to be shutdown to punters.
Gemma Gibson, 41, from Newcastle, said she was “really excited” to see Kneecap perform and cancelling them “would be completely against everything that Glastonbury stands for… This is where they should be.”
Ahead of their set, band member JJ O Dochartaigh — who performs as DJ Próvaí — was pictured wearing a t-shirt which read “We are all Palestine Action”.
The anti-Israeli acitivists group is set to be proscribed as a terrorist organisation after spraying paint into the jet engines of military aircraft at RAF Brize Norton.
Mo Chara thanked Glastonbury organisers the Eavis family for not cancelling their show, telling the crowd: “The pressure that that family was under and they stood strong. Fair play to them.”
He also pointed out the number of Palestinian flags in the crowd and said: “That’s going to give the BBC editor a headache.”
They closed the show by criticising Keir Starmer and thanking fans, adding: “Us three have no right to be on this stage in front of this many people, rapping in a language most people at home don’t even speak.”
A BBC spokesperson said: “As the broadcast partner, the BBC is bringing audiences extensive music coverage from Glastonbury, with artists booked by the festival organisers.
“While the BBC doesn’t ban artists, our plans ensure that our programming meets our editorial guidelines. We don’t always livestream every act from the main stages and look to make an on-demand version of Kneecap’s performance available on our digital platforms, alongside more than 90 other sets.”
The band said on Instagram: “The propaganda wing of the regime has just contacted us… They WILL put our set from Glastonbury today on the iPlayer later this evening for your viewing pleasure.”
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Source: Celebrities - dailystar.co.uk
