UK police drop probe into Bob Vylan over ‘death to the IDF’ chant

British punk duo led anti-Israel chant onstage at Glastonbury music festival in June, drawing condemnation from UK, US government, and a BBC apology for not cutting its broadcast

British police said Tuesday they’ve dropped their investigation into rap duo Bob Vylan, launched after the artists led a music festival crowd in chants of “Death, death, to the IDF.”

“We have concluded, after reviewing all the evidence, that it does not meet the criminal threshold outlined by the CPS (Crown Prosecution Service) for any person to be prosecuted,” Avon and Somerset Police said in a statement.

“The comments made on Saturday 28 June drew widespread anger, proving that words have real-world consequences,” they wrote, adding they believe it was right to investigate the comments.

“We sought specific consideration around the words stated, in terms of the intent behind them, the wider context of how people heard what was said, case law and anything else potentially relevant, including freedom of speech,” they said.

In June, the rap duo’s lead vocalist, who avoids using his real name in public, led an audience at the Glastonbury music festival in chants of “Free, free, Palestine,” and then introduced the previously obscure chant of “Death, death to the IDF” – a reference to the Israel Defense Forces.

He also told the crowd, “We’re not pacifist punks,” adding: “Sometimes you’ve got to get your message across with violence because that is the only language that some people speak, unfortunately.”

Days later, British police said they had opened an investigation into Bob Vylan’s behavior, and that of Irish-language band Kneecap, which also called for “death” to the Israeli military at the music festival.

In November, police said the matter was recorded as a “public order incident” and that they would “continue to investigate and consider all relevant legislation.” They also said they’d held a voluntary police interview under caution with a man in his mid-30s – roughly the age of the investigated performer.

In their statement Tuesday, police called the probe “an incredibly complex case,” and said they’d sought information from some 200 people to ascertain if they were victims of a criminal offense due to the comments.

Bob Vylan, which formed in 2017, has released four albums mixing punk, grime, and other styles with confrontational lyrics that often address issues including racism, masculinity and politics.

The Glastonbury chants were quickly condemned by the UK government, as well as by the US, which barred the duo from entering the country. The BBC also apologized for not terminating their broadcast of the festival once the chants began.

In October, British Airways cut its sponsorship of British journalist Louis Theroux’s podcast, after he released an interview with the vocalist in which the latter doubled down on his statements at the festival. Theroux was accused of not sufficiently pushing back against the rapper.