AP
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The London court on Friday abandons fear-related accusations against members of the controversial Irish hip-hop group Kneecap and builds on a decision on technical errors in the way the accusations progress.
Rapper Mo Chara, whose real name is Liam Ógó Hannaidh, has been accused of waving the flag of Hezbollah, a Lebanese extremist group banned as a terrorist organization in the UK during a London concert last year.
However, Prime Minister Paul Goldspring, sitting at Woolridge Crown Court, said the case should be abandoned following the technical error in the way the charges against the rapper were brought about.
“These cases are illegally enacted and are null,” he said.
The three patellas from Belfast, Northern Ireland, face criticism of political statements that appear to praise extremist groups like Hamas and Hezbollah. Hungary and Canada have previously banned groups.
Kneecap accused critics of trying to silence the band in support of the Palestinian cause during the war in Gaza. The band says Hezbollah and Hamas also don’t tolerate violence.
Hannaid, 27, had argued that it was a politically motivated effort by the prosecutors to silence the band’s support for the Palestinians.
Michelle O’Neill, Northern Ireland’s first pastor, said the charges were part of “a calculated attempt to confront and silence those who speak out against the Israeli genocide of Gaza.”
“KneeCap has used its platform at stages around the world to expose this genocide. It is our responsibility to all of us to speak out and continue to stand up to Palestinian injustice,” she added.
