UK Court Throws Out Kneecap Terror Charge Quoting Technicality

A London court has thrown out a terror charge against a member of the Irish rap group Kneecap.

Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring said on Friday the case against Liam Og O hAnnaidh should be thrown out due to a technical error in the way the charge against the Belfast-based rapper was brought. The case has become highly charged with critics citing it as an illustration of a clampdown on free speech.

Goldspring ruled that O hAnnaidh, 27 – initially charged under the Anglicised name Liam O’Hanna and who performs under the stage name Mo Chara – had been charged after the six-month limit to bring such a charge, which can only be dealt with by the magistrates’ court.

“The charge is unlawful and null and this court has no jurisdiction to try the charge,” the judge said.

O hAnnaidh was charged in May for displaying a Hezbollah flag during a London concert in November 2024.

Since the United Kingdom banned Hezbollah as a “terrorist” organisation in 2019, it has been an offence to show support for the group.

O hAnnaidh had denied the offence, saying the flag was thrown on stage during the group’s performance. The band has branded the legal process a “witchhunt”.

Following the ruling, O hAnnaidh hailed the court’s decision. He declared that it showed attempts to muzzle the band’s support for Palestinians had failed.

“It was always about Gaza, about what happens if you dare to speak up … Your attempts to silence us have failed, because we’re right and you’re wrong,” he said in front of a crowd of supporters gathered outside the court.A Metropolitan Police spokesperson said: “We will work with the Crown Prosecution Service to understand the potential implications of this ruling for us and how that might impact on the processing of such cases in the future.”