Health Secretary Wes Streeting said the Israeli embassy needs to take violence against Palestinians more seriously before talking about chants at Glastonbury.
The festival saw thousands chant ‘death to the IDF (Israeli Defence Forces)’ during a performance from Bob Vylan, which Streeting said was ‘appalling’.
The Israeli Embassy said in a statement: ‘The embassy in the United Kingdom is deeply disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage at the Glastonbury Festival.’
This morning, Streeting responded to that statement on Sky News Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips.
‘Get your own house in order in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank,’ he said.
‘I think there’s a serious point there by the Israeli embassy that I take seriously. I wish they’d take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously.’
Rapper Bob Vylan led chants at Glastonbury of ‘Free, free Palestine’ and ‘Death, death to the IDF’. Irish rap trio Kneecap also led pro-Palestine remarks.
Police are currently investigating the chants.
‘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 health secretary added.
‘But the fact that we saw that chant at a music festival, when there were Israelis at a similar music festival who were kidnapped, murdered, raped, and in some cases still held captive, whether it’s a Palestinian or an Israeli, whether it’s a Christian, a Jew or a Muslim, all life is precious.
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‘All life is sacred. And I find it pretty revolting we’ve got to a state in this conflict where you’re supposed to sort of cheer on one side or the other like it’s a football team.’
Asked if the BBC should have cut the live feed, he said the broadcaster has questions to answer, but that he did not know what the editorial and operational challenges were of taking such action.
Avon and Somerset Police said video evidence would be assessed by officers ‘to determine whether any offences may have been committed that would require a criminal investigation’.
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch called the scenes grotesque, writing on X: ‘Glorifying violence against Jews isn’t edgy. The West is playing with fire if we allow this sort of behaviour to go unchecked.’
A BBC spokesperson said: ‘Some of the comments made during Bob Vylan’s set were deeply offensive. During this live stream on iPlayer, which reflected what was happening on stage, a warning was issued on screen about the very strong and discriminatory language. We have no plans to make the performance available on demand.’
Kneecap, who hail from Belfast, have been in the headlines after member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, was charged with a terror offence.
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.
During the performance, fellow Kneecap member Naoise Ó Cairealláin said: ‘The Prime Minister of your country, not mine, said he didn’t want us to play, so f*** Keir Starmer.’
Glastonbury organisers said in a statement online: ‘As a festival, we stand against all forms of war and terrorism. We will always believe in – and actively campaign for – hope, unity, peace and love.
‘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.
‘However, we are appalled by the statements made from the West Holts stage by Bob Vylan yesterday.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.’
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