Irish rap trio Kneecap claimed to have been banned from advertising on the London Underground. 

In an Instagram post shared today (July 10), the group shared a picture of the offending poster. “[It] has been rejected because: ‘it is likely to cause widespread or serious offence to reasonable members of the public on account of the product or services being advertised, the content or design of the advertisement, or by way of implication’,” they wrote. “See it. Say it. Censored.”

The group then suggested that there was a double standard in the ways in which they have been repressed for speaking up about the ongoing genocide in Gaza, while Israeli Defence Force soldiers were recently allowed to train on British soil. “Speak out against genocide and they’ll use every single angle they can to silence you. Join the IOF [pejorative term for the Israeli Defence Force], murder kids, fly to London and nothing happens – you’ll be welcomed and applauded.”

This news follows a series of controversies surrounding the trailblazing Irish-language hip-hop act, often linked to their activism in support of Palestine. The group were reportedly under investigation by the Avon and Somerset police after their performance at Glastonbury festival last month, during which rapper Moglaí Bap appeared to call for a riot outside fellow Kneecap member Mo Chara’s upcoming court date at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on August 20. Mo Chara is facing charges for allegedly supporting Hezbollah, a proscribed organisation in the UK.

Nonetheless, Bap later clarified during the performance that he didn’t want a literal riot, but rather peaceful support for Chara. He also reiterated their earlier statements that the current media focus on the group amounts to a distraction from UK’s sustained complicity in selling weapons to Israel, announcing: “the story isn’t about Kneecap, the story is about the genocide that is happening right now in Palestine.

Earlier today, music protest charity Love Music Hate Racism released their lineup for a demonstration taking place outside of Westminster Magistrates Court in support of Mo Chara on the August 20 hearing date. The event will include speeches and performances from Nadine Shah, Maverick Saber, Jehlani Blackman, Bimini, Ben Jamal and more.