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Hasan Piker, a pro-Palestinian US streamer, says he was barred by the UK government from entering the country over his criticism of Israel, along with his uncle, a prominent broadcaster. (Dia Dipasupil/FilmMagic/Getty Images via CNN Newsource)
By Sana Noor Haq, CNN
(CNN) — Britain’s government has barred pro-Palestinian American streamer Hasan Piker and his uncle from entering the country, prompting criticism from free speech advocates over what they say is a crackdown on dissent related to Israel’s campaign in Gaza.
The United Kingdom’s Home Office canceled travel permits belonging to Piker, 34, and Turkish-American broadcaster and attorney Cenk Uygur. The pair were scheduled to speak this week at the South by Southwest technology and business festival (SXSW) in London and address the Oxford Union, a debating society at the prestigious British university.
In a statement to CNN, the Home Office said it revoked Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) for Piker and Uygur — which permits non-UK citizens to visit the country without a visa for up to six months — “on the grounds that their presence in the UK may not be conducive to the public good.”
Such decisions “are based solely on an assessment of potential risk an individual may pose to UK society,” the Home Office said, adding that “individuals may choose to apply for a visa if they still wish to travel to the UK.”
On Sunday, Piker posted on X that the British government had “revoked my visa.”
In a text message to CNN on Monday, Piker harshly criticized Israel and Britain, charging that free expression and due process in the UK “are falling by the wayside at the behest of a foreign apartheid state and its expansionist interests in the Middle East.” He added, “This is a real crisis of democracy.”
Uygur said he discovered he’d been barred when he tried to board a flight to the British capital.
“I’ve been banned for criticizing Israel. Are we free anymore? This is oppression of Western citizens by our own governments on behalf of a different country!” he posted on X.
Piker’s hours-long live-streaming broadcasts, in which he discusses breaking news and policy, reach more than 30,000 people daily, according to his profile on the SXSW website. It describes him as “an authoritative voice” for millennials and Gen Z. He has about 6.4 million followers across the social media platforms X, Instagram and Twitch.
Uygur founded the independent online talk show, The Young Turks, which bills itself as a progressive online news and commentary program with a large following among young people. Uygur also campaigned for the Democratic nomination in the 2024 US presidential election.
Uygur told CNN he was “banned from entering the country for doing a news show.” He addedin a statement:“Are there any other countries you’re not allowed to criticize, or just Israel? If their point was to show that Israel does not get any special privileges in Western countries, they have found a deeply ironic way to deliver that message.”
British media first reported that Home Secretary Shabhana Mahmood canceled Piker and Uygur’sETAs early Monday. The decision to bar Uygur from traveling to Britain is “understood to have been based on several grounds,” including that his presence in the UK would “risk exacerbating antisemitism,” London’s Times newspaper reported.
In April, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer warned that a recent spate of antisemitic attacks left Jewish people “scared to show who they are.”
Some Jewish groups say criticism of Israel has fueled intimidation and antisemitism. But others say accusations of antisemitism have been used to suppress legitimate criticism of Israel’s government.
‘Dangerous precedent’ for free speech
One British lecturer — Lewis Turner, the co-vice president of the British Society for Middle Eastern Studies — cautioned that the government’s decision sets a “dangerous precedent” for free expression in the country.
“The UK government appears to be banning individuals from entering the UK because of their criticism of Israeli state policies,” Turner told CNN on Monday.
“This comes in the context of a much wider crackdown on freedom of expression relating to Palestine, especially since October 2023,” he added, referring to Hamas’ attack on Israel and the ensuing Israeli campaign in Gaza.
Piker has repeatedly insisted he is anti-Zionist, not antisemitic, and he has called for greater accountability over Israeli actions in the Gaza Strip. Both Piker and Uygur have described the Israeli offensive in Gaza as a genocide.
In September, an independent UN inquiry concluded that Israel had committed genocide against Palestinians in Gaza, a finding the Israeli government rejected.
A self-professed socialist, Piker has been one of the most potent advocates for the rights of Palestinians under Israeli bombing in Gaza following the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attack.
He has also made comments that have drawn criticism. In an April episode of the podcast, “Pod Save America,” he claimed, “I’m a lesser-evil voter, and therefore I would vote for Hamas over Israel every single time.” Hamas has been designated a terrorist organization by a number of countries and entities, including the United States, Britain and the European Union.
Several years earlier, the Twitch streamer apologized for “inappropriate” remarks he made in 2019 that “America deserved 9/11.” He said during an appearance on The Young Turks, “I should’ve used more precise and better use of the language there.”
Speaking at the Oxford Union last May, Piker described antisemitism as “one of the oldest bigotries that has caused those of the Jewish faith a tremendous amount of pain.” He also denounced the “conflation of anti-Zionism and antisemitism” as a “cynical ploy to stop all manner of conversation.”
Donie O’Sullivan contributed to this report.
The-CNN-Wire
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