IRISH musicians are boycotting the South by Southwest festival (SXSW) in the US over the event’s sponsors — the US army and arms companies with links to the genocide in Gaza.

Ireland’s Culture Minister Catherine Martin has said she will still attend the festival in Austin, Texas, despite the boycott.

Social Democrats leader Holly Cairns said it was “deeply disturbing” that the minister plans to attend the festival, while People Before Profit TD Paul Murphy said it is “nothing short of shameful.”