Kneecap member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh has terror charge thrown out of court over "technical error"
Kneecap member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh has had his terrorism charge thrown out of court over a “technical error” in the charging process.
The musician, 27, was previously accused of waving a flag in support of proscribed terrorist group Hezbollah during a live gig at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town in November 2024. He was charged under the Terrorism Act in May 2025.
At Woolwich Crown Court on Friday, September 26, chief magistrate Paul Goldspring ruled that the Attorney General had not given permission for the case to be brought against Ó hAnnaidh before police informed him that he was to face a terror charge. Ó hAnnaidh’s lawyers previously argued this point and called the charge unlawful.
In his judgment, Mr Goldspring agreed with this, saying: “These proceedings were instituted unlawfully and are null.”
Concluding the reasons for his decision, he said: “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. 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.”
Prosecutor Michael Bisgrove previously told the court that permission from the DDP or AG was not needed until the defendant’s first court appearance in connection to the charge. He added that permission did not need to be sought in order to being a criminal charge against him.
The arrest and charge against Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara as part of the Belfast hip-hop trio, sparked protests and demonstrations outside court dates and at live performances. During a court appearance last month, hundreds of supporters gathered outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court holding ‘Free Mo Chara’ signs and chanting in support of the star.
Kneecap have been outspoken about their anti-Zionist views both at performances and on social media, with the terror investigation launched in the wake of controversy after they displayed an message that read ‘F*** Israel Free Palestine’ during their Coachella set in April.
After Ó hAnnaidh was charged, the band said in a statement: “14,000 babies are about to die of starvation in Gaza, with food sent by the world sitting on the other side of a wall, and once again the British establishment is focused on us. We deny this ‘offence’ and will vehemently defend ourselves, this is political policing, this is a carnival of distraction.
“We are not the story, genocide is, as they profit from genocide, they use an ‘anti-terror law’ against us for displaying a flag thrown on stage. A charge not serious enough to even warrant their crown court, instead a court that doesn’t have a jury. What’s the objective? To restrict our ability to travel. To prevent us speaking to young people across the world. To silence voices of compassion. To prosecute artists who dare speak out.
“Instead of defending innocent people, or the principles of international law they claim to uphold, the powerful in Britain have abetted slaughter and famine in Gaza, just as they did in Ireland for centuries. Then, like now, they claim justification. The IDF units they arm and fly spy plane missions for are the real terrorists, the whole world can see it. We stand proudly with the people. You stand complicit with the war criminals. We are on the right side of history. You are not. We will fight you in your court. We will win. Free Palestine.”
Northern Ireland’s First Minister Michelle O’Neill welcomed Ó hAnnaidh’s charge being thrown out of court, saying: “These charges were part of a calculated attempt to silence those who stand up and speak out against the Israeli genocide in Gaza. 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.”