Kneecap have threatened legal action against Canadian MP Vince Gasparro who accused them of “dangerous endorsements of violence and hate”.
The Irish group – who were due to perform in Toronto and Vancouver in October – have been banned from entering Canada after Gasparro accused them of amplifying “political violence and publicly [displaying ] support for terrorist organisations such as Hezbollah and Hamas”.
He said in a statement on X: “Recently, the rap group Kneecap has engaged in actions and have made statements that are contrary to Canadian values and laws that have caused deep alarm to our government.
“The group have amplified political violence and publicly displayed support for terrorist organisations such as Hezbollah and Hamas.
“These are not expressions of art or legitimate political critique, they are dangerous endorsements of violence and hate. Notably, one member of the band is currently facing terrorism-related charges in the United Kingdom.
“Criticism of foreign governments is protected under Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms, however advocating for political violence, glorifying terrorist organisations and displaying hate symbols that directly target the Jewish community are not protected forms of expression and will not be tolerated by our government.
“That is why, as parliamentary secretary for combating crime, I am announcing that, effective immediately, the members of Kneecap have been deemed ineligible to enter Canada.”
However, the band – comprised of Naoise Ó Cairealláin, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh and JJ Ó Dochartaigh – hit back and vowed to take legal action over the “wholly untrue and deeply malicious” claims.
They said in a statement posted on Instagram: “Your comments about us are wholly untrue and deeply malicious. We will not accept it.
“No member of Kneecap has been convicted of ANY crime in ANY country EVER.
“Whilst you outrageously try to claim we are antisemitic ‘the Times’ newspaper in England today wrote of our headline show in London last night as ‘emphatically anti-sectarian’.
“We have today instructed our lawyers to initiate legal action against you.
“We will be relentless in defending ourselves against baseless accusations to silence our opposition to a genocide being committed by Israel.
“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.”