After initially being pressed with terror charges for supporting a proscribed organisation in 2024, Mo Chara of controversial Irish hiphop act Kneecap is off the hook again. In a court document published today, judges have refused an appeal from the Crown Prosecution Services (CPS) to reinstate the claims against him and pursue another trial.
The Belfast rapper, whose real name is Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, has been embroiled in a legal war with the British Government since the incident on the 21st of November 2024. As staunch supporters of Palestine during their conflict with Israel, the band has frequently spoken out against the British Government’s actions or lack thereof, with previous acts of declaring support for Middle-Eastern political groups being recorded. During a Kneecap concert at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town, he was witnessed waving a flag associated with Lebanese Islamist group Hezbollah, which he claims was thrown onto the stage by a crowd member. Endorsement or support of Hezbollah is illegal due to the government proscribing them as a terrorist faction, with the punishment if found guilty carrying six months imprisonment and a fine.
The Metropolitan Police were made aware of a video of the incident in April last year, and Mo Chara was charged under the Terrorism Act 2006 on the 22nd of May 2025. After the first hearing at Westminster Magistrates Court in June, the group’s actions and scheduled performance at the year’s Glastonbury Festival were publicly scrutinised by Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, himself a former Director of Public Prosecutions.
Following another hearing in August, the verdict was handed down on the 26th of December, with Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring finding that the charges against Mo Chara were unlawful. Due to internal issues with the CPS’s process, the formal charging on the 22nd of May was one day over the six-month window since the initial perceived crime on the 21st of November 2024. In a social media post, Kneecap’s manager Daniel Lambert said “Liam Óg is a free man. We said we would fight them and win. We did (Twice). Kneecap has NO charges OR convictions in ANY country, EVER.”
In October, the CPS lodged an appeal against the courts, seemingly hell-bent on making an example of the group. Kneecap described this as “political policing”, and noted that the press had been alerted to the news before any of their legal team. This appeal was quashed today by judges at the High Court in London, validating the Chief Magistrate’s assertions on the charges and their timing. In the document published digitally by Lord Justice Edis and Mr Justice Linden, they clarified that the CPS’s claim falling outside the six-month window had nullified the charges.
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Mo Chara and Kneecap have celebrated the news with several social media posts this afternoon, taking aim at the government – both their involvement in Northern Irish affairs and their silence on Palestine. Writing on Instagram, they say “The worlds biggest terrorists are the leaders of the British state. Free Palestine. Free the 6 counties.” The tussle with the British state clearly hasn’t deterred them from political activism. Just this week, the act announced their support of the Nuestra América Convoy, a relief effort to provide supplies to Cuba during their trade embargo at the hands of Donald Trump’s US Government.
2026 will also be a big year for music for Kneecap, with their third album ‘Fenian’ set for release on the 24th of April. So far they have shown furious singles ‘Liars Tale” and ‘Smugglers & Scholars’. In addition to a big headline show at London’s Crystal Palace Park on the 27th of June, they are also embarking on an extensive summer tour of European festivals over 2026. You can catch them at Boomtown as well as Reading and Leeds festivals this August with ticket links on their website.
