‘We will not be silent’: Kneecap’s Mo Chara statement as Hezbollah terror case thrown out after technical error

Following the hearing, the rapper told crowds: “We will not be silent.”

Kneecap rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh has told supporters we will not be silent” after terrorism charges against him were thrown out following a technical error.

The terrorism case against O hAnnaidh was thrown out on Friday morning following a technical error in the way the charge against him was brought.

The 27-year-old Kneecap rapper from Belfast, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was accused of displaying a flag in support of proscribed terror organisation Hezbollah at a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, north London, in November last year.

READ MORE: Kneecap court case LIVE UPDATES as terror charge against Mo Chara thrown outREAD MORE: Michelle O’Neill says charges against Kneecap rapper were “attempt to silence”

At Woolwich Crown Court on Friday, chief magistrate Paul Goldspring agreed with O hAnnaidh’s lawyers, who argued that the Attorney General had not given permission for the case to be brought against the defendant when police informed him he was to face a terror charge on May 21.

In his judgment, Mr Goldspring said: “These proceedings were instituted unlawfully and are null.”

There were huge cheers from the public gallery as the chief magistrate handed down his judgment, with O hAnnaidh smiling and putting both his thumbs up to supporters at the conclusion of the hearing.

Following the hearing, the rapper told crowds: “We will not be silent.”

Outside court, O hAnnaidh said his terrorism case “was always about Gaza”.

After thanking his legal team and his interpreter who helped him follow court proceedings, Mr O hAnnaidh said: “This entire process was never about me.

“It was never about any threat to the public, it was never about terrorism – a word used by your Government to discredit people you oppress.

“It was always about Gaza, about what happens if you dare to speak up. As people from Ireland, we know oppression, colonialism, famine and genocide.”

Speaking outside court, Liam Og O hAnnaidh added: “We have suffered, and still suffer, under your empire. Your attempts to silence us have failed because we’re right and you’re wrong. We will not be silent.

“We said we would fight you in your court and we would win. Today, we have. If anyone on this planet is guilty of terrorism, it’s the British state. Free Palestine. Tiocfaidh ar la.”

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.”

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