Kneecap Member Charged with Terrorism by London Metropolitan Police—Band Responds

A member of Irish hip-hop group Kneecap has been charged with a terror offense for actions allegedly performed at a London gig.

Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, has been charged by Metropolitan Police after a November 21st incident at the O2 Forum in London. He is scheduled to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on June 18th. Mo Chara has been charged with a terror offense after allegedly displaying a flag in support of Lebanese Shia Islam political and military organization Hezbollah during a performance back in November.

Kneecap released a statement on social media, denying the alleged offense and vowing to vehemently defend themselves: “This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction. We are not the story. Genocide is. As [the British government] profit[s] 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,” they continue.

“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.”

“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,” their message concludes.

Officers from the Metropolitan counter terrorism command were made aware on April 22nd of an online video from the November 21st concert. An investigation was carried out, which led to the authorization of the criminal charge. Both Hamas and Hezbollah are banned in the UK, and it is a crime to express support for them.

Kneecap claim they have never supported Hamas or Hezbollah, and would not incite violence against anyone. They further assert the video of their concert was taken out of context, that a fan threw the offending flag on stage and the band had nothing to do with it.

Regardless, a number of the band’s shows have been cancelled since the allegations emerged. Their next scheduled performance is a headlining spot at Wide Awake Festival in Brockwell Park, South London, this Friday.