The terrorism case against Kneecap rapper Mo Chara has been thrown out after a technical error was found in the way the charges were brought against him.
Chara, whose real name is Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, was accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at an O2 Forum gig in north London last year.
The Irish rapper, 27, has strenuously denied the charge, describing it as both ‘political policing’ and ‘a carnival of distraction’, adding that ‘genocide [is] the real story’.
On Friday morning at Woolwich Crown Court, chief magistrate Paul Goldspring stated that he agreed with Chara’s lawyer, who had argued that the case had been brought against the rapper unlawfully.
Mr Goldspring determined that the Attorney General had not given permission for the case to be brought against Chara when police informed him he was to face a terror charge on May 21.
Brenda Campbell KC, representing Chara, had said that consent was only given on the following day, which fell outside the six-month period in which criminal charges can be brought.
In his judgment, delivered before the courts this morning, Mr Goldspring said: ‘These proceedings were instituted unlawfully and are null.’
He added: ‘I find that these proceedings were not instituted in the correct form, lacking the necessary Director of Public Prosecutions and Attorney General consent within the six-month statutory time limit.
‘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.’
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In a statement delivered outside the courthouse, Chara said: ‘This entire process was never about me, never about any threat to the public, and never about terrorism – a word used by your government to discredit people you oppress.
‘It was always about Gaza, and about what happens if you dare to speak up. As people from Ireland, we know oppression, colonialism, famine, and genocide. We have suffered, and still suffer, under your empire.
He continued: ‘Your attempts to silence us have failed because we’re right and you’re wrong. We said we would fight you in your court and we would win. Today, we have. If anyone on this planet is is guilty of terrorism, it’s the British state. Free Palestine.’
A Lebanese political party and paramilitary group, Hezbollah was proscribed as a terrorist organisation in its entirety in 2019 after parts of it had been previously proscribed in 2001 and 2008.
Hezbollah has been involved in a long-running conflict with Israel, with one of their primary goals being the recognition and establishment of a full Palestinian state.
Kneecap are no stranger to controversy, having also been investigated by police following their performance at Glastonbury Festival earlier this year.
The rap trio led the thousands-strong West Holts Stage audience in ‘Free Palestine’ chants directly after in their set, with Avon and Somerset Police launching an official probe into their set.
However, the investigation by police was dropped following a review of available evidence, with Kneecap sharing the news on their Instagram page.