Kneecap Banned From Canada After Accusation of Supporting Terrorist Groups: ‘We Will Not Accept It’

Irish rap trio Kneecap has been banned from entering Canada, with the government accusing the group of allegedly promoting violence and hatred and supporting terrorist groups.

In a video posted to his X account on Friday (Sept. 19), Canadian MP Vince Gasparro — who also serves as a parliamentary secretary for combatting crime — said that the group “made statements that are contrary to Canadian values and laws that have caused deep alarm to our government.” In the caption to his video, Gasparro added that the government “will not tolerate the advocating of political violence, terrorism or Anti-Semitism and hate more broadly,” and deemed the group “ineligible” to enter Canada.

Kneecap has become known in recent years for its animated live shows, in which the band regularly speaks out against the war in Gaza and delivers pro-Palestinian messages from the stage. The group regularly calls Israel’s actions against the Palestinian people “genocide”; a recent United Nations commission of inquiry agreed that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza.

In a statement posted to its Instagram, the band — made up of members Mo Chara, Móglaí Bap and DJ Próvaí — repudiated Gasparro’s claims, calling the politician’s statement “wholly untrue and deeply malicious,” and that “we will not accept it.” The members said that they will be seeking legal action against Gasparro. “We will be relentless in defending ourselves against baseless accusations to silence our opposition to genocide being committed by Israel,” the statement read. “When we beat you in court, which we will, we will donate every cent to assist some of the thousands of child amputees in Gaza.”

The news comes just before Kneecap was set to perform a string of shows throughout Canada in October. In a second statement addressed to Canadian fans, Kneecap apologized to fans for the band’s shows being canceled, but added that “we will not be silenced and will always oppose genocide.” The band also urged fans to “use your voices in Canada — stand up and speak out.”

In August, Kneecap canceled its upcoming shows in the United States due to an impending court date in London, where Chara is due to defend himself against charges of supporting terrorist groups including Hamas and Hezbollah. In the band’s statement to fans at the time, the group apologized for the inconvenience, but told them to keep an eye out for “something very special for U.S. fans.”

Watch Gasparro’s video and read Kneecap’s response below: