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Kneecap Speak Out After Being 'Banned' From Advertising On London Underground

Kneecap Speak Out After Being 'Banned' From Advertising On London Underground
Kneecap on stage in London last weekKneecap have accused the London Underground of “censorship” after revealing that an ad for their upcoming live show has been banned from appearing on the Tube.For the last few months, the West Belfast trio have claimed that they’ve been the victims of a “witch-hunt” and “smear campaign” ever since their set at the Coachella music festival in April, where they expressed solidarity with Palestine,  leading the crowd in chants of “free Palestine” and projecting messages like “fuck Israel” onto the screens behind them.In the days after Coachella, it was reported that counter-terrorism officers were assessing resurfaced videos recorded months earlier, one of which reportedly saw the group declaring “up Hamas, up Hezbollah” at a gig in London.It was later revealed that band member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh – better known to fans of the rap group by his stage name Mo Chara – had been charged with a terror offence, for allegedly brandishing the flag of the proscribed terrorist group Hezbollah, after being handed the flag at a Kneecap show in London in November 2024.Responding to Ó this, Kneecap said: “We deny this ‘offence’ and will vehemently defend ourselves. This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction. We are not the story. Genocide is.”They also insisted in a group statement: “Let us be unequivocal. We do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah. We condemn all attacks on civilians, always. It is never okay.”Amid the controversy, Kneecap have continued to perform – including a scene-stealing appearance at Glastonbury last month – and are preparing to take to the stage at London’s Wembley Arena in September.On Thursday evening, however, the band wrote on Instagram that they had been “banned from advertising on the London Tube”.View this post on InstagramA post shared by KNEECAP (@kneecap32)“How petty can political policing and interference get…?” the trio questioned. “After using the Tube to advertise loads of times for gigs, records and our movie, all without issue.“The poster on the next graphic 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 service being advertised, the content or design of the advertisement, or by way of implication.”Kneecap’s post featured an image of the “banned” poster in question, which featured the name of the group, the time and place of their upcoming gig and a graphic inspired by the mask worn on stage by DJ Próvaí.We've been banned from advertising on the London Tube.How petty can political policing and interference get... After using the tube to advertise loads of times for gigs, records and our movie, all without issue.The below poster has been rejected because: "it is likely to… pic.twitter.com/jx8gnqSdkF— KNEECAP (@KNEECAPCEOL) July 10, 2025“Speak out against genocide and they’ll use every single angle they can to silence you,” the post concluded. “Join the [Israeli Occupation Forces], murder kids, fly to London and nothing happens – you’ll be welcomed and applauded.”A Transport For London spokesperson told HuffPost UK: “All adverts submitted for display on our network are reviewed on a case-by-case basis.“Having given this very careful consideration, this advert was rejected as it was deemed that running it would likely cause widespread or serious offence to reasonable members of the public.”HuffPost UK has also contacted Kneecap’s management for additional comment.Following their set on Glastonbury’s West Holts stage last month, a spokesperson for Avon and Somerset Police confirmed a criminal investigation was underway, sparked by both Kneecap and Bob Vylan’s performances.However, it was not made exactly clear which parts of Kneecap’s set had inspired this investigation.READ MORE:Here's What Actually Went Down When Kneecap Performed At GlastonburyKneecap Reflect On Incident That Led To Band Member Being Charged With Terror OffenceKneecap Lay Into Kemi Badenoch On Newly-Released Single The Recap

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