Members of Kneecap pose on the red carpet at the Irish Film and Television Academy (IFTA) Awards in Dublin, Ireland, Feb. 14, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Clodagh Kilcoyne

Hungary has banned members of the Irish rap trio Kneecap from entering the country for three years ahead of their scheduled performance at a major music festival, due to national security concerns surrounding what critics have decried as the band’s antisemitic hate speech and their alleged support for Hamas and Hezbollah.

The Belfast-based band is scheduled to perform on the closing day of the Sziget Festival in Budapest on Aug. 11. Kneecap has stirred controversy recently for a series of anti-Israel comments and a band member’s alleged support for Hamas and Hezbollah, which are proscribed terrorist organizations in the United Kingdom and United States. Kneecap has denied support for both Iran-backed Islamist terror groups.

Hungary’s immigration authority, the National Directorate-General for Aliens Policing, announced in a Hungarian-language degree on Thursday that Kneecap members Naoise Ó Cairealláin, J.J. Ó Dochartaigh, and Liam Óg ÓhAnnaidh are banned from entering Hungary for three years because their “entry and stay constitute a serious threat to national security.”

Zoltan Kovacs, Hungary’s secretary of state for international communications, further explained in an English-language social media post on Thursday that Kneecap cannot enter Hungarian territory due to their history supporting “antisemitism and glorifying terror.” Kovacs added, “Granting them a stage normalizes hate and terror, and puts democratic values on the line.”

Kneecap’s members “repeatedly engage in antisemitic hate speech supporting terrorism and terrorist groups” and Hungary “has zero tolerance for antisemitism in any form,” he continued. “Their planned performance posed a national security threat, and for this reason, the group has been formally banned from Hungary for three years. If they enter, expulsion will follow under international norms.”

Hungarian authorities — including Hungary’s Minister for European Affairs János Bóka – members of Hungary’s music industry, and others have been pressuring organizers of the Sziget Festival for some time to cancel the band’s performance because of their comments and behavior, characterizing them as antisemitic. Sziget Festival organizers said in a statement they think the decision to ban Kneecap from Hungary is “unnecessary and regrettable” and may “not only damage the reputation of Sziget, but also negatively affect Hungary’s standing worldwide.”

“Sziget Festival’s values mean we condemn hate speech, while guaranteeing the fundamental right to artistic freedom of expression for every performer,” they added. “Cancel culture and cultural boycotts are not the solution.”

Since Kneecap displayed anti-Israel messaging on stage at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California in April, two major music festivals in Germany canceled the band’s performances, and their performances were also canceled at the Eden Project concert series and the TRNSMT festival – both in the UK. Kneecap was further dropped from its US booking agency, and television personality Sharon Osbourne called for their US visas to be revoked.

The Hungarian government has been a vocal supporter of Israel in recent months, going against much of the rest of Europe, which has grown increasingly critical of the Jewish state over its military campaign against Hamas terrorists in Gaza.

In April, Hungary’s parliament approved the country’s decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC) because of its “political” stance against Israel and the Jewish state’s military actions during its war against Hamas terrorists in the enclave responsible for the massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

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Ozzy Osbourne of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath arrives at the 56th annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, California, Jan. 26, 2014. Photo: REUTERS/Danny Moloshok

Rock and heavy metal music legend Ozzy Osbourne, who died on Tuesday morning at the age 0f 76, had a life that involved activism for pro-Israel and Jewish causes as well as two trips to Israel and a home life that integrated Judaism with the help of his wife, Jewish television personality Sharon Osbourne.

The family of the British musician announced his passing in a released statement. He is survived by his wife Sharon, their children – Kelly, Jack, and Aimee – and his son Louis from his previous marriage to Thelma Riley.

Earlier this month, the nicknamed “Prince of Darkness,” who lived with Parkinson’s disease, played his final show with Black Sabbath at Villa Park in his home city of Birmingham in the United Kingdom, where he had been living with his family. Osbourne, whose real name is John Michael Osbourne, co-founded his heavy metal band Black Sabbath in 1968. The band’s name came from its original bassist Geezer Butler, who was inspired by the 1963 horror film “Black Sabbath.”

In a statement given to The Algemeiner on Thursday, Ari Ingel – the executive director of the non-profit, pro-Israel organization Creative Community for Peace (CCFP) — praised the musician as “not only a pioneer in metal, but also a steadfast supporter of Israel and the Jewish people.” Osbourne has given support to several CCFP initiatives in the past. The organization is comprised of prominent members of the entertainment community who make an effort to combat antisemitism and cultural boycotts of Israel.

“Throughout difficult times, the Osbourne family has stood proudly with the Jewish people and showed unwavering solidarity,” Ingel added in his statement. “Leave it to Ozzy to be present and take part in his own epic tribute concert just weeks ago. That’s a true legend. Ozzy may be gone, but legends like him don’t die — they echo forever. As we honor his extraordinary legacy, CCFP sends its deepest condolences to Sharon, their children, and all who loved him. Our hearts are with the Osbourne family during this painful time. May his memory be a blessing.”

In October 2024, Osbourne signed a CCFP open letter condemning cultural boycotts of Jewish and Israeli authors and literary institutions. He performed in Israel twice – first with 2010’s Ozzfest in Tel Aviv’s Hayarkon Park and then in 2018 at Live Park in Rishon Lezion as part of his “No More Tours 2” tour. During his trips to the Jewish state, he visited Jerusalem’s Old City, the Western Wall, and Yad Vashem – The World Holocaust Remembrance Center.

When the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) aired a documentary in March that was accused of promoting Hamas propaganda and anti-Israel sentiments, Osbourne signed a CCFP open letter that called on the BBC to launch a full investigation into its “bias against Israel.”

The post Rock Legend, Black Sabbath Co-Founder Ozzy Osbourne Was a ‘Steadfast Supporter of Israel, Jewish People’ first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei speaks during a meeting in Tehran, Iran, May 20, 2025. Photo: Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader/WANA (West Asia News Agency)/Handout via REUTERS

Iran’s chief nuclear negotiator has warned that Tehran may withdraw from the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), an international accord meant to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons, if European countries move forward with reinstating international sanctions.

On Wednesday, Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister and a key figure in the nuclear talks, cited a previous decision by former Iranian President Hassan Rouhani that Tehran would withdraw from the nuclear accord if UN sanctions were reinstated.

“There was a communication by President Rouhani to his counterparts that if the snapback is triggered, what would be the response of Iran at that time, he wrote that Iran would withdraw from the NPT,” Gharibabadi said during a press conference.

Iran’s threats came just days ahead of the upcoming nuclear talks with the United Kingdom, France, and Germany — collectively known as the E3 — after the trio warned they would reinstate UN sanctions on Tehran if no new agreement is reached by the end of August.

The sanctions were originally lifted under the 2015 nuclear deal — known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) — which imposed temporary restrictions on Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for large-scale sanctions relief.

Although the United States withdrew from the agreement in 2018 under President Donald Trump’s first administration, Iran and the three European nations have continued to uphold the deal.

Under the terms of the UN Security Council resolution enshrining the 2015 accord, international sanctions could be reimposed on Iran, restoring all previous UN economic penalties including those targeting Iran’s oil, banking, and defense sectors, through a “snapback” mechanism that would take about 30 days. France, Britain, and Germany have indicated the latest time to reactivate the sanctions would be the end of August, with Russia, a close partner of Iran, assuming the Security Council presidency in October.

Many Western governments believe the ultimate purpose of Iran’s nuclear program is to build nuclear weapons. Tehran claims its nuclear activities are for peaceful, civilian purposes.

During this week’s press conference, Gharibabadi emphasized the regime’s commitment to the NPT, even amid “huge pressure at the domestic level” to exit, particularly after the recent 12-day war with Israel.

“After this aggression, the people, parliamentarians, journalists, politicians — they were of the view that now is the time to withdraw from the NPT, because the aggression was worse than the snapback,” Gharibabadi said. “But Iran decided to stay in the NPT.”

“But I’m quite confident that if the snapback is triggered, Iran will not show more restraint in this regard,” the Iranian diplomat said.

He also described Friday’s upcoming meeting with Western powers as highly significant, but warned that its outcome will largely depend on the approach the Europeans take toward Iran.

“We have always valued our meetings with the European countries. But there is an important issue — I think we have always told them that the policies of the European countries should be independent,” Gharibabadi said.

“They should not coordinate their positions with the Americans,” he continued.

Iran has previously warned it will take action if sanctions over its nuclear program are reinstated, without specifying what those measures might be.

“The snapback mechanism is meaningless, unjustifiable, unethical, and illegal,” Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei said during a press conference on Tuesday.

Baghaei also reaffirmed that the Islamist regime has “no plans to hold talks with the US in the current situation.”

In a Fox News interview aired Monday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi reaffirmed that Iran will not abandon its uranium enrichment program, despite recent Israeli and US strikes on its nuclear facilities.

“We cannot give up enrichment because it is an achievement of our own scientists. And now, more than that, it is a question of national pride,” the top Iranian diplomat said. “Our enrichment is so dear to us.”

On Thursday, Gharibabadi said nuclear talks with the US could resume as long as Tehran’s rights under the NPT are recognized and Washington both builds trust with Tehran and guarantees that negotiations will not lead to renewed military action against Iran.

The US and Iran had conducted five rounds of diplomatic talks over Iran’s nuclear program before Israel and the US bombed Iranian nuclear facilities last month.

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