Kneecap Banned From Performing in Hungary, Group Calls Goverment’s Decision ‘F–king Outrageous’

Kneecap has officially been banned from performing in Hungary, just ahead of a planned appearance at the Sziget festival in Budapest, and they think the move is “fucking outrageous.”

In a post on X/Twitter, Secretary of State Zoltan Kovacs announced that the Irish rap group “are officially banned from entering Hungary—for anti-Semitism and glorifying terror. When hate ignores the mail, we put it on a wall.”

Kovacs stated that “Hungary has zero tolerance for anti-Semitism in any form” and add that Kneecap’s appearance at Sziget “posed a national security threat.” For this reason, he said, “the group has been formally banned from Hungary for three years. If they enter, expulsion will follow under international norms.”

Kneecap has been facing allegations of anti-semitism for months, due to their open support of Palestine. Back in April, during their Coachella set, Kneecap displayed some messages from the stage, including: “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people…It is being enabled by the U.S.,” and “Fuck Israel / Free Palestine.” This and other comments they’ve made have led to the band being investigated by authorities.

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In response to Kovacs, Kneecap issued a statement on social media, saying, “To the tens of thousands of fans who we were buzzing to see in person at Sziget, we’re sorry we won’t be with you. The authoritarian government of Viktor Orban say we ‘pose a national security threat.’ Which is f–king outrageous coming from a man who welcomed Netanyahu, a wanted war criminal, like a hero just a few weeks ago.”

The group went on to say that there is “no legal basis for his actions” as “no member of Kneecap has ever been convicted of any crime in any country,” asserting that they “stand against all hate crimes [and] champion love and solidarity.”

“It’s clear this is political distraction and a further attempt to silence those who call out genocide against the Palestinian people,” they continued. “Much like the good people of Budapest, who defied their own President’s ban on their ‘Pride Parade’ in June, we will fight on for what is right.”

The trio concluded their message: “Free Palestine, Tiocfaidh ár lá [Our day will come], Fuck Viktor Orban.”