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British police announced on Tuesday that they would take no action following comments made against the Israeli army during a concert by punk duo Bob Vylan at the Glastonbury music festival in June.
“We have concluded, after considering all the evidence, that he does not meet the criminal threshold set by the CPS. [Crown Prosecution Service] for anyone to be prosecuted,” Avon and Somerset Police said.
Bob Vylan’s performance included singer Bobby Vylan’s onstage chants of “death, death to the IDF”, a reference to the Israeli Defense Forces’ fighting in Gaza.
There was not enough evidence to establish a realistic prospect of conviction, police said.
Law enforcement said they interviewed a man in his 30s and contacted about 200 members of the public during the investigation.
The comments on stage drew widespread criticism, including from British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who called the chant “appalling hate speech”, and the Israeli embassy in London. The BBC, Britain’s public broadcaster, also faced backlash for not stopping live broadcasts of the show.
Intent, broader context taken into account
After the performance earlier this year, Bobby Vylan said on social media that he was flooded with both “support and hatred” for the singing.
“Teaching our children to speak up for the change they want and need is the only way to make this world a better place,” he said.
In their statement on Tuesday, Avon and Somerset Police said they considered the intention behind the words, the wider context, case law and freedom of speech issues before concluding the investigation.
“We believe it is right that this matter has been thoroughly investigated, every potential criminal offense has been carefully considered and we have sought every possible advice to ensure we make an informed decision,” he said.
“The comments made on Saturday June 28 sparked widespread anger, proving that words have real consequences,” the statement said, adding that the force engaged with Jewish community groups throughout the process.
Earlier this year, British police said comments made by Bob Vylan and Irish band Kneecap at the festival would both be investigated criminally.
An earlier terrorism charge against a Kneecap member for allegedly displaying a flag of the militant group Hezbollah was dismissed in September, and a member of the group was barred from entering Canada earlier this year after an MP first said entry was barred to the entire group.
