A London judge has officially dropped a terrorism charge against a member of the acclaimed Irish-language rap group, Kneecap. The ruling, announced on Friday, comes after the group faced intense scrutiny for its vocal stance on Israel and the Palestinian cause. The judge’s decision highlighted an error in how prosecutors had brought the charge, failing to meet the required timeline.
Last May, British authorities pressed charges against rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, known by his stage name Mo Chara. He was accused of displaying a flag of Hezbollah, the Lebanon-based militant group, which Britain classifies as a terrorist organization, prohibiting the display of its symbols.
In previous interviews, Mr. Ó hAnnaidh, charged under the name Liam O’Hanna, stated he unknowingly picked up the flag at a concert last year after an audience member tossed it onto the stage.
Judge Paul Goldspring sided with Mr. Ó hAnnaidh’s legal team, agreeing that prosecutors had overstepped the statute of limitations and failed to secure timely official sign-off for the charges.
Mr. Ó hAnnaidh, a passionate advocate for both a united Ireland and the Palestinian cause, made a striking entrance at the courthouse, wearing a balaclava in the vibrant colors of the Irish flag.
He removed the balaclava before entering the courtroom, where he sat in the witness box clad in a black and white kaffiyeh. His expression remained neutral as the judge delivered the verdict, a moment met with cheers from Kneecap supporters filling the public gallery.
Immediately following the hearing, Mr. Ó hAnnaidh briefly addressed a throng of supporters gathered outside the courthouse on a makeshift stage.
“This entire process was never about me, never about any threat to the public, never about terrorism,” he declared. “It was always about Gaza, about what happens if you dare to speak up.”
He powerfully added, “If anyone on this planet is guilty of terrorism, it’s the British state.”
Pádraig Ó Tiarnaigh, a 36-year-old Kneecap supporter from Belfast, expressed his hope outside the courthouse that the ruling would inspire other artists and musicians to advocate for Palestinians. “We’re delighted for Kneecap, and it shines a spotlight on the British establishment trying to silence artists and activists who are calling for an end to the genocide in Palestine,” he said.
However, the verdict was met with disappointment by some Jewish and pro-Israel groups. The Campaign Against Antisemitism, which had previously alerted Britain’s counterterrorism police to a video of Mr. Ó hAnnaidh holding the Hezbollah flag, criticized the outcome as a display of “utter incompetence by the authorities.”
“What good is our criminal justice system if it cannot get its act together in a case of a man stood draped in the flag of a proscribed terrorist organization that wants to annihilate all Jews?” the Campaign Against Antisemitism stated in an email. They added that the judge’s decision demonstrated Britain’s “incapability of protecting” Jewish people.
Despite rapping primarily in Irish, Kneecap’s popularity has surged among English-speaking audiences over the past year, partly fueled by a hit comedy movie chronicling the band’s origin story.
The group boasts over 1.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify and recently played a sold-out 12,500-capacity show in London. During this performance, they displayed messages like “Free Palestine” and other anti-Israel sentiments on large screens.
The band’s outspoken views on the Middle East have repeatedly landed them in controversy. In April, Kneecap lost its U.S. visa sponsor following anti-Israel comments made onstage at California’s Coachella festival. In August, they canceled a planned U.S. tour, which included two sold-out shows at the Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York.
Kneecap is already prohibited from entering Hungary. Just last week, the Canadian government also denied entry to the group, scuttling plans for a tour scheduled to begin October 14 in Toronto. Vince Gasparro, Canada’s parliamentary secretary for reducing crime, asserted in a video that Kneecap had “amplified political violence” and “publicly displayed support for terrorist organizations.”
In response, Kneecap announced on Instagram their intention to pursue legal action against Mr. Gasparro for his “wholly untrue and deeply malicious” remarks. “We will be relentless in defending ourselves against baseless accusations to silence our opposition to genocide being committed in Israel,” the band’s statement concluded.
This London court ruling marks the band’s second recent legal triumph. In July, police in southwestern England concluded an investigation into comments made by band members onstage at Glastonbury, Britain’s largest music festival. While specific comments were not detailed, the band had publicly declared “Israel are war criminals” and led a massive crowd in chants of “Free, free, Palestine.”