Banned US commentators to address Oxford Union via livestream
Hasan Piker and Cenk Uygur were blocked from entering the UK over claims their anti-Israel rhetoric could exacerbate antisemitism
Two extreme anti-Israel American commentators banned by the Home Office from entering the UK will still address the Oxford Union this weekend by appearing via livestream.
Hasan Piker—who has previously said, “Hamas is a thousand times better than Israel”—and his uncle Cenk Uygur, founder of The Young Turks media network, were prevented from entering the UK, where they had been scheduled to appear at several events this week.
The Home Office is understood to have acted over fears that their presence could exacerbate antisemitism in the UK, including by amplifying rhetoric seen as supportive of the proscribed terror group Hamas.
The president of the Oxford Union criticised the ban, declaring: “This event will not be cancelled. The Union will ensure this discussion takes place. Free speech does not require a visa. We will update our members shortly.”
Arwa Elrayess added: “The Oxford Union was founded on one principle: that ideas are challenged through debate, not silenced by decree. We have never turned a speaker away because of their political beliefs, nor have we sought a permission slip from the state. We will not start now.”
Jewish News understands that the Union now plans to livestream Piker and Uygur for the event on Saturday, 6 June, allowing them to participate in a discussion and head-to-head with members.
Mainstream communal groups in the UK welcomed the Home Office’s decision to block the pair from entering the country.
Labour MP David Taylor also argued that a visit from Piker—who has over 3 million followers on Twitch and more than 1.5 million on X—was “not conducive to the public good,” urging the Home Office to revoke his visa.
However, free speech activists have criticised the ban. Jemimah Steinfeld, chief executive of the Index on Censorship, called it a “worrying escalation.”
While the Oxford Union event will go ahead via livestream, there are no plans for the pair to speak remotely at another UK event they were previously scheduled to attend.
A spokesperson for the SXSW culture festival said: “We are aware that Cenk Uygur and Hasan Piker are unable to travel to the UK following a decision by the Home Office. They will therefore not be participating in the SXSW London programme this year.”
Interviewed by Conservative politician and GB News commentator Jacob Rees-Mogg Uygur was pressed on comments that “Israel controls the US government through donations to 94 percent of Congress.”
Rees-Mogg said to him “you are meaning Jewish people control” as the government of Israel was not able to donate money to Congress because this was not legally possible.
Uygur fumed the only time he had been banned from entering the UK was “when I criticise Israel” and accused the former minister of “lying about me.”
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