MP says Bob Vylan row 'a distraction from Gaza'

Ellie Chowns has said Bob Vylan's Glastonbury performance was a "distraction" from ongoing violence in Gaza

A Herefordshire MP says the row over Bob Vylan's performance at the Glastonbury Festival is a distraction from talking about the ongoing "actual violence" in Gaza.

Ellie Chowns, Green MP for North Herefordshire who was at the festival, stressed she completely disagreed with the punk duo urging "death" to Israeli troops, during their set on Saturday, but criticised the amount of coverage the incident has had.

"Incitement to violence is totally the opposite of my politics and I completely disagree with that: whoever it comes from, wherever it's done," she said.

She spoke out after the prime minister condemned the band for what he called "appalling hate speech".

"I'd never heard of Bob Vylan before this weekend," Chowns continued.

Lead singer Bobby Vylan led the crowd in chants of "death, death to the IDF [Israel Defense Forces]", during Saturday's set

"It's also quite weird to me that this is also over all of the front pages. And it's a distract[ion]… They're probably loving the attention.

"What we should be talking about is the actual violence that is happening in Gaza."

She drew attention to the fact the more people were killed overnight on Sunday and more Gaza citizens displaced.

"It is horrendous what is happening there and I do find it a bit odd the papers are full of this stuff about what a band has said, which I completely disagree with, but we should be focusing the attention on what's happening to people's lives in Gaza."

Chowns was at the festival to deliver a talk entitled "From protest to power: the politics of hope and action", on Thursday.

In the talk she spoke about how grassroots movements can achieve real change through the ballot box.

The MP also took part in a panel on climate change, on Friday.