Republicans Attempt to Bar Rap Duo Bob Vylan from U.S. Following ‘Death to IDF’ Chant at Glastonbury

British punk-rock and hip-hop group Bob Vylan faces potential U.S. performance restrictions, where they are slated to open for an American singer, following a contentious showing at England’s Glastonbury Festival over the weekend.

During their Glastonbury performance, broadcast annually by the BBC, one of the group’s members, Bobby Vylan, prompted the audience to chant, “Death to the IDF,” referring to the Israel Defense Forces, which shocked both organizers and attendees.

The duo has drawn significant condemnation in the U.K., and British police confirmed they are reviewing video footage of the incident for potential criminal offenses.

The Israeli embassy in the U.K. stated it was “profoundly disturbed by the inflammatory and hateful rhetoric expressed on stage” and that “when such messages are delivered before tens of thousands of festivalgoers and met with applause, it raises serious concerns about the normalisation of extremist language and the glorification of violence.”

“We are appalled by the statements made from the West Holts stage by Bob Vylan yesterday,” Emily Eavis, Glastonbury’s co-organizer and daughter of the festival’s founder, remarked in a statement. “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.”

U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer denounced Vylan’s actions on the Glastonbury stage, stating, “There is no excuse for this kind of appalling hate speech.” He also demanded that the BBC provide answers regarding its broadcast of the controversial remarks.

In a statement, the BBC affirmed Vylan’s expressions “were utterly unacceptable and have no place on our airwaves.” It explained that the performance was aired live because the BBC team was managing “a live situation” but conceded that “with hindsight we should have pulled the stream during the performance.”

Starmer had previously called it “totally wrong” for Irish rap trio Kneecap, who have accused Israel of committing genocide in Gaza and criticized the U.S. and U.K. for enabling it, to be performing at the festival, and the BBC had previously decided in advance not to broadcast Kneecap’s performance live to “ensure that our programming meets our editorial guidelines.”

Vylan performed prior to Kneecap’s set, where festival attendees had gathered in anticipation with Palestinian flags. Singer Bobby Vylan initially led the crowd in chanting, “Free, free, Palestine!” He then interjected: “Alright, but have you heard this one though?” before leading a chant of “Death, death to the IDF!”

The chant echoed the phrasing of “Death to Israel” and the rallying cries of Iran as well as Hezbollah.

Following the ensuing controversy, Bobby Vylan posted “I said what I said” on X, where he shared a statement explaining: “Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way that we make this world a better place.”

Here’s what to know.

Who is Bob Vylan?

Bob Vylan comprises singer-guitarist Bobby Vylan and drummer Bobbie Vylan, who collectively refer to themselves as “the Bobs.” The two reportedly use stage names to maintain privacy, but some U.K. outlets have since identified Bobby Vylan as 34-year-old Pascal Robinson-Foster.

Formed in Ipswich in 2017, the duo, with over 200,000 monthly listeners on Spotify, is recognized for its politically charged music and performances.

According to The Guardian, their songs “often speak out against racism, homophobia, toxic masculinity and far right politics,” and in previous performances, Bobby would introduce their song “Pretty Songs” by stating “violence is the only language that some people understand.” The paper also mentioned that Bobby has been intentionally provocative in past shows, such as by swinging a baseball bat at the audience or wearing the soccer jersey of the rival team of the location where they were performing.

Last year, Bobby expressed his anger that he was infuriated by bands that did not speak more about Gaza. He stated that the response of the U.K. and U.S. governments, “but also the people’s response – the people of these countries … will be remembered forever. It will be documented throughout history. If you’re asking yourself, ‘Oh, what would you have done during slavery? What would you have done throughout the Holocaust?’ You’re doing it now – right now. With what it is happening over there in Palestine, you’re doing it.”

What are the reactions in the U.S.?

StopAntisemitism, a U.S. advocacy group, posted on X that the duo has U.S. performances scheduled later this year and commented about Bobby Vylan: “This antisemite must have his visa denied/rescinded – his hate is not welcome here.”

Republican Representative Randy Fine of Florida responded to the post, saying “On it.”

An unnamed senior State Department official informed conservative media company Breitbart that they are “looking at [the] revocation” of the duo’s visas. The official stated: “Under the Trump Administration, the U.S. government will not issue visas to any foreigner who supports terrorists.”

Secretary of State Marco Rubio, tagged in StopAntisemitism’s post, has not yet publicly commented on the matter. The State Department has not replied to TIME’s request for comment.

Leo Terrell, also tagged and chair of the Justice Department’s task force to combat antisemitism, responded publicly. He posted on X: “These abhorrent chants, which included calls for the death of members of the Israeli Defense Forces, are abhorrent and have no place in any civil society.” He continued: “We understand that Mr. Vylan is planning to travel to the United States as part of the Inertia Tour. In response, Mr. Terrell’s Task Force will be reaching out to the U.S. Department of State on Monday to determine what measures are available to address the situation and to prevent the promotion of violent antisemitic rhetoric in the United States.”

Senator Ted Cruz (R, Texas) shared a video of the incident on X, remarking: “Truly sick. Thousands of people screaming ‘Death to the IDF.’ This is the base of the Democrat Party.”