by The terrorism case against Kneecap rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh has been officially thrown out of court due to a technical error in the way the charge was originally brought against the musician.
The rapper, stage name Mo Chara, was accused of displaying a Hezbollah flag at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town in London, in November last year.
The Irish trio appeared in court for the third time on September 26th to face the charge. Soon after, their lawyer Darragh Mackin shared news of the victory online, writing, “The prosecution case was instituted unlawfully. The case ends today. Victory to Mo Chara. Victory to Kneecap. Victory to the freedom of expression.”
At Woolwich Crown Court, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring agreed with Mackin, who argued that the Attorney General had not permitted the case to be brought against the defendant when police informed him he was to face a terrorism charge in May. Goldspring deemed that the proceedings were “instituted unlawfully and are null.”
He added of the conclusion to the case: “I find that these proceedings were not instituted in the correct form, lacking the necessary DPP (Director of Public Prosecutions) and AG (Attorney General) consent within the six-month statutory time limit.”
He continued: “The time limit requires consent to have been granted at the time or before the issue of the requisition. Consequently, the charge is unlawful and null and this court has no jurisdiction to try the charge.”
Kneecap’s manager, Daniel Lambert, celebrated the news online, writing on X: “We have won!!!!!! Liam Óg is a free man. We said we would fight them and win. We did. (Twice) Kneecap has NO charges OR convictions in ANY country, EVER. Political policing has failed. Kneecap is on the right side of history. Britain is not.”
Michelle O’ Neill, First Minister of Northern Ireland, has celebrated the new verdict online, writing, “I strongly welcome this decision. These charges were part of a calculated attempt to silence those who stand up and speak out against the Israeli genocide in Gaza.”
She added, “Kneecap have used their platform on stages across the world to expose this genocide, and it is the responsibility of all of us to continue speaking out and standing against injustice in Palestine.”
Kneecap continue their fight against the international backlash they have received for their unwavering support of the Palestinian cause. Most recently, the Canadian MP Vince Gasparro announced that they were barred from entering the country. In response, Kneecap wrote online that they have “instructed our lawyers to initiate legal action against you. We will be relentless in defending ourselves to a genocide being committed by Israel.”
