Kneecap says anti-Israel message at Coachella 'was not aggressive'
The group Kneecap says it has been on the receiving end of both messages of support and threats following their "f**k Israel" message at Coachella.
The group has also stated that the message was "not aggressive".
It had actually played two dates at the Coachella festival: April 11 and April 18.
At the first one, they sang "Maggie’s in a Box" (mocking the death of Margaret Thatcher) according to music magazine NME.
The band also complained afterwards that a pro-Palestine message which was supposed to appear on stage had been cut.
At their second performance on April 18, the words "f**k Israel, free Palestine" were displayed on the stage.
This prompted former X Factor judge Sharon Osbourne to say that the festival organisers shoud have anticipated this and cancelled their appearance.
The group's Twitter feed regularly uses the expression "f**k Israel," and it calls the state "evil" – a decription it also extends to the USA, because of American support for Israel.
Mrs Osbourne told her 2.2m Twitter followers the festival had "compromised its moral and spiritual integrity".
"While I respect their right to express their opinions, such discussions would have been more appropriate at their own concert, not at a festival," she said.
"Kneecap, an Irish rap group, took their performance to a different level by incorporating aggressive political statements…
"I urge you to join me in advocating for the revocation of Kneecap’s work visa."
Though the band's manager has refused to comment to the News Letter, the BBC quoted the band as saying: "Statements aren't aggressive, murdering 20,000 children is though."
The band posted on Twitter: "Amongst the hundreds of violent Zionist threats there's thousands of these..." alongside screenshots of fanmail they had received after the performance, thanking them for their messaging on Palestine.
The band also retweeted a message from another user, saying: "What happened at Coachella is Israel's worst nightmare.
"They're learning that no matter how many politicians they own? And how much corporate media they control?
"They can't wipe out the truth any more. Those days are over."