Fans of rap group Kneecap gathered outside court today to support one of its members as he appeared for a hearing after being accused of a terrorism offence.
Liam Og O hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, is accused of displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah at a gig in November last year.
The 27-year-old arrived at Westminster Magistrates’ Court this morning following the alleged incident during a gig at the O2 Forum in Kentish Town, North London.
Today, he got out of a vehicle with bandmates Naoise O Caireallain and J J O Dochartaigh, arriving to a scrum of hundreds of supporters who cheered as they arrived. The band were wearing ‘Free Mo Chara’ T-shirts as they arrived at court.
Og O hAnnaidh wore sunglasses, a black t-shirt, trousers and black jacket and held a Keffiyeh – a type of shawl often worn by supporters of the pro-Palestine movement – and his cheering fans chanted ‘Free, free Palestine and ‘Free, free Mo Chara’.
The members then walked up the stairs of the court and looked over the balcony, smiling and giving a thumbs up to their supporters gathered outside. Members of the crowd had surged around the entrance, with some also entering the lobby.
The charge Og O hAnnaidh faces alleges that he displayed a flag in a public place, ‘in such a way or in such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is a supporter of a proscribed organisation’ – namely Hezbollah.
Kneecap described the prosecution as a ‘witch hunt’ in a post on X yesterday, which included a short video which appeared to show a billboard that had been displayed in London with the words ‘more blacks, more dogs, more Irish, Mo Chara’.
Outside the court today, hundreds of demonstrators gathered to show their support for the group while an Irish folk band performed traditional songs to the crowd.
Fans of the band held signs and banners stating ‘Free Mo Chara’, ‘Stop Arming Israel’, ‘Liam’s Too Pretty 4 Prison’ and ‘Defend Kneecap’ as well as waving Palestinian and Irish flags and others emblazoned with Kneecap’s iconic Irish flag-striped balaclava.
Meanwhile a van drove past stating: ‘More blacks, more dogs, more Irish, Mo Chara’ – echoing the notorious, racist ‘no blacks, no dogs, no Irish’ signs commonplace in the windows of rooming houses in London in the 1950s.
As it continued to drive past the crowd, they erupted into cheers as well as chants of ‘Free Palestine’ and ‘From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free’.
In court today, Og O hAnnaidh – who appeared on the court list as Liam O’Hanna – spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address.
Prosecutor Michael Bisgrove said: ‘This case is not about Mr hAnnaidh’s support for the people of Palestine or his criticism of Israel.’
He told the court Og O hAnnaidh is ‘well within his rights’ to express his support and solidarity for Palestinians.
Mr Bisgrove continued: ‘The allegations in this case are wholly different.
‘It is about a video recording where Mr Og O hAnnaidh is seen wearing the flag of a proscribed group while shouting ‘up Hamas , up Hezbollah’.’
Brenda Campbell KC, one of his lawyers, said the defence would argue that the charge was brought after the six-month limit to bring such a charge.
Og O hAnnaidh was released on unconditional bail until his next hearing on August 20 when legal argument will be dealt with.
Og O hAnnaidh requested an Irish language interpreter for the trial.
Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring told him he must attend court on that day. He received a round of applause outside the courtroom after the short hearing.
Hundreds of fans along with journalists crammed against the doors of the court building as they waited for the performer to leave.
He went into a side room to speak with lawyers after the hearing.
Speaking outside the court, a spokesperson for the band said: ‘Over 18 countries, 100,000 fans, 80 concerts, not a single complaint.
‘Around the world Kneecap are hailed as heroes for speaking truth to power.
‘The truth was outed. This was a rushed prosecution following the Coachella performance where Kneecap did not shy away from speaking truth to power.
‘Oppression fears the freedom of expression but the reality is Kneecap would stand up to the freedom of expresssion and they will defend their rights. Not only the rights of them but the rights of artists and people all around the world.
‘And it’s not new for Irish people to be prosecuted under special powers and terrorism acts. But friends, fans, family do not be afraid we are on the right side of history
‘The more they come after Kneecap the louder we will get. If the British Government had any sense of history they will know they have already lost.’
Advertising their upcoming gigs to the hundreds of fans outside the courtroom, Naoise O Caireallain said: ‘For anybody going to Glastonbury, you can see us there at 4pm on the Saturday.
‘If you can’t be there we’ll be on the BBC, if anybody watches the BBC. We’ll be at Wembley in September But most importantly: Free, free Palestine.’
Ahead of Og O hAnnaidh’s arrival to court, Kneecap shared a picture of the musician on Instagram showing his middle finger to the camera alongside the caption: ’20 minutes away a chairde Gael’.
Austrian Alexandra Kennedy, who had travelled from her home country to show support in London, said: ‘I think that Kneecap are important to so many people that if Liam Og O hAnnaidh gets a heavy sentence, then maybe people will lose something, they need the connection to Kneecap.’
Copywriter Victoria Ashworth and her daughter Lily travelled from their home in Brighton to attend the protest before the court hearing.
Ms Ashworth, 53, said: ‘I just feel like the charges are utterly ridiculous. I believe in freedom of speech. We want to be part of this to be on the right side of history.
‘We have been fans of the music for quite a while.’
Lily, 20, a university student, added: ‘They’re allowed to have their own voice and shutting them down doesn’t seem fair.’
She said she heard about the protest on social media and from various fan groups.
Charles Parker, 35, said protesting was important to him because he believed in ‘freedom of speech’.
The composite engineer from Northamptonshire said: ‘I believe in freedom for Palestine. I come from an Irish Republican background and Palestine helped us in the 1990s.
‘We stand by those who stand by us. I have been a fan of Kneecap since I saw them in Belfast about five years ago.
‘I’m open to whatever may happen. If the Metropolitan Police do anything, you’ve got to be ready for anything.’
Police removed a pro-Israel protester who walked into the crowd wearing an Israeli flag which prompted boos, swearing and shouts of ‘free Palestine’.
The crowd became animated and shouted ‘Israel is a terrorist state’ and ‘take him out for his own safety’ as he made gestures and argued with protesters.
Police surrounded the man as the crowd moved towards him, with protesters cheering as he was removed.
The Metropolitan Police said the force had charged O hAnnaidh, who appears on the court list as Liam O’Hanna, after initially being made aware of a video from the gig at the O2 Forum which had been posted online.
In a separate event shortly after the terrorism charge, O hAnnaidh could be seen in social media videos entering the stage with tape covering his mouth.
The Met previously said the Belfast rap trio were under investigation after clips posted online appeared to show the band calling for the deaths of MPs and shouting ‘up Hamas, up Hezbollah’.
Kneecap said they have ‘never supported’ Hamas or Hezbollah, both of which are banned in the UK.
