Hasan Piker banned from entering the UK
The far-left commentator, as well as his uncle Cenk Uygur, had their visas cancelled by the British government. Both blamed Israel for the cancellation.
A notorious far-left political commentator with troubling positions on both Hamas and Hezbollah has been banned from entering the UK and has claimed that the British government did so “at the behest of Israel”.
Hasan Piker, a far-left streamer, was due to appear at several events in London this week, with his similarly controversial uncle, Cenk Uygur, also intending to enter the UK. Both were invited to the South by Southwest (SXSW) London festival, which describes itself as a “global festival for the convergence of business, technology and creativity”. Piker had previously also been announced as a panellist for an event organised by UnHerd magazine.
Piker, who has millions of followers across different social media platforms, has a long track record of highly incendiary comments. He described the allegations of extreme sexual violence carried out against Israelis on 7 October as “rape fantasies”, subsequently going on to say that “it doesn’t matter if rapes f***ing happened on 7 October, like that doesn’t change the dynamic for me… the Palestinian resistance is not perfect.” He has described how in his opinion “Hamas is a thousand times better than Israel”, describing it as “a militant resistance comprised of orphaned soldiers born into a 77 year occupation” and has said that he is “a lesser evil voter and therefore I would vote for Hamas over Israel every single time.”
The ADL, America’s most prominent organisation combating antisemitism, has described how “Piker’s record of support for designated terrorist organizations and derogatory rhetoric about Jews represents a dangerous pattern that his millions of followers are exposed to regularly. His growing involvement in electoral politics and mainstream media amplifies these messages far beyond fringe spaces.”
Piker has also described how he does “not have a single issue with Hezbollah as a form of militancy trying to incur penalties on the genocidal state of Israel.” He has also described Hezbollah’s flag as his favourite… Look it up. I’m not even kidding. It’s actually a dope flag…It’s got an AK on it and a fucking hand holding it up!” He has described how he believes that “any kind of fuc**** Zionist tendency should be treated in the same way as being a f***ing rabid neo-Nazi” and has described Zionism as “a mental illness”.
Both Hamas and Hezbollah are proscribed as terrorist organisations in the UK; the majority of Jews – both in the UK and worldwide, are Zionists.
On Sunday night Piker tweeted that “the uk has revoked my visa as well. all at the behest of israel. the west is betraying ‘liberal values’ for a genocidal fascist foreign government. soon we will all become israel.”
As per The Times, the reason to block Cenk Uygur, the creator of The Young Turks media network, from the UK, was based on several grounds, including fears that his presence would risk exacerbating antisemitism due to his rhetoric since the 7 October attacks in 2023, which included repeating classic antisemitic tropes, such as the claim that Israel controls America. He also falsely claimed on his podcast in July last year that the Israeli lobby gave more to Congress than any other.
Uygur claimed, via social media, that he had been banned from entering the UK “for criticising Israel”, saying “It’s an honor to have made Israel’s enemies list. I’m very proud to have fought against their genocide. The mighty United Kingdom is afraid of speech that shows you who’s responsible for those war crimes. But no amount of censorship will get us to stop telling the truth.”
UK Jewish groups had called for Piker to be banned, as well as Parliamentarians such as Labour MP David Taylor, who said that a visit from Mr Piker, who has more than three million followers on Twitch and over 1.5 million on X, was “not conducive to the public good” and urged the Home Office to revoke his visa.
The festival describes him as “redefining what political commentary looks like in the digital age” and says his live streams reach more than 30,000 people every day.
Taylor said: “It’s shocking that SXSW would invite someone who has openly supported a proscribed terrorist organisation and spouted these kinds of vile antisemitic rants to speak at their festival.
“With the unacceptable rise in antisemitism on our streets leaving British Jews in a constant state of anxiety, Hasan Piker is clearly not conducive to the public good.
“The Home Office must revoke his visa immediately.”
The Jewish community group CST urged organisers to “act responsibly” and not allow the UK to be a “platform” for Mr Piker.
“Hasan Piker has a record of promoting rhetoric that includes antisemitic themes, denial of well documented atrocities and apparent support for extremist groups”, a spokesperson for the group said.
“This is entirely unacceptable, particularly given his large online following.
“At a time of record levels of antisemitism in the UK, it is vital that all institutions, including event organisers, act responsibly and consider the potential impact of this kind of rhetoric.
“The UK should not be a platform for individuals who spread hatred or legitimise extremism.”
Earlier this year, Kanye West, who has used Nazi imagery and faced accusations of antisemitism, was barred from travelling to the UK to headline Wireless festival.
The Government also blocked 11 foreign nationals described by Sir Keir Starmer as “far-right agitators” from entering the UK ahead of a Tommy Robinson-led rally in central London earlier this month.
Those claiming to have been barred include Polish politician Dominik Tarczynski, Belgian politician Filip Dewinter, anti-Islam commentator Valentina Gomez and Dutch activist Eva Vlaardingerbroek.
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