Members of Irish rap band Kneecap charged with “terrorism” crime | Hezbollah News
British police said Mo Chara showed the flag of Hezbollah in Lebanon at a concert.
A member of the Irish rap band KNEECAP was charged with a crime of “terrorism” in the UK during a concert in London in November 2024.
British police said on Wednesday that Liam O'Hanna's stage name is Mo Chara, who will appear in the Westminster Magistrates Court in London on June 18.
Since the Hamas attacks led on 7 September 2023 and the devastating war on Gaza, KNEECAP has been supporting the Palestinian cause, equating the Irish struggle with the struggle under British colonial rule against the Palestinians who live in Israeli occupation and secrets.
The pro-Palestine chant is a regular fixture in their performances. The band said they have been the target of the smearing movement that promotes Israel’s genocide war.
Kneecap Statement:
Since our remarks at Coachella (exposed the genocide of the Palestinian people) – we are facing a coordinated smear campaign.
For over a year, we have been using our show to gather the accomplices of the British and Irish governments in war crimes. pic.twitter.com/mbojb5qbop
– Kneecap (@kneecapceol) April 25, 2025
The Belfast trio is also known for its political and satirical lyrics and symbolism associated with the Irish Republican movement, which seeks to unite the Republic of Ireland currently in the UK with the Republic of Ireland.
More than 3,600 people have died in the thirty years of violence in Northern Ireland in a “trouble” involving the IRA, pro-British loyalist militia and British security forces.
Kneecap's name comes from the cruel punishment, which involves being shot in the knee, while paramilitary groups summoned the punishment to whistleblowers and drug dealers.
The band was praised for revitalizing the Irish language and culture stage in Northern Ireland, where the status of the language remains a controversial political issue in a society that is still between Protestant British Unionists and Catholic Irish nationalist communities.
It has also been criticized for its lyrics that contain scattered and drug references.
Last month, Kneecap came under rigorous scrutiny and criticism at the music festival Coachella performance in California when they projected “F*** Israel. Free Palestine.” on stage.
“The Irish were persecuted by the British not long ago, but we were never bombarded by the sky where there was nowhere to go! The Palestinians had nowhere to go – this is their f************************************************************ You don't call it the f*** of the race, what are you calling it?” Read the word projected by Mo Chara.
Earlier this month, British intelligence officers said they would investigate the rap group's comments on British and Middle Eastern politics, which has been re-examined by KNEECAP.
They reportedly recorded with the police at a concert in 2024, in which one of the band members seemed to say: “The only good Conservative party is the dead Conservative party. Kill your local MP.” In 2023, footage of another concert seemed to show a member of the trio shouting “Hamas, Hizbola” – both considered by Britain to be “terrorist” groups.
In response, Kneecap said it “never supported Hamas or Hezbollah” and accused “building characters” of commenting from the context to “create moral hysteria” as the band’s criticism of Israel’s attack on Israeli Palestinians on Gaza.
Several Kneecap shows have been cancelled due to controversy, and some British MPs have called on organizers of the June Glastonbury Festival to cancel the group's planned performance.