Sawt Falasteen - Irish rappers Kneecap deny Hezbollah support after terror charge

The Iran-backed Lebanese force Hezbollah and the Palestinian militant group Hamas are banned in the UK and it is an offence to support them.

"We deny this 'offence' and will vehemently defend ourselves. This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction," the band said on X.

Liam O'Hanna, 27, known by his stage name Mo Chara, was charged late on Wednesday with showing support for a proscribed group during a performance on November 21.

Daring provocateurs to their fans, dangerous extremists to their detractors, the Belfast group rap in the Irish language as well as English.

They have courted controversy since they were formed in 2017.

Last year the group was catapulted to international fame by a semi-fictionalised film, partly in Irish, partly in English, that won multiple awards including at the prestigious Sundance festival.

The movie, which is laced with music, drugs and biting satire, also made shortlists for Oscar nominations in the best international feature film and best original song categories.

London's Metropolitan Police said officers from its Counter Terrorism Command launched an investigation after a video of the London event in November surfaced online last month.

In its statement, Kneecap attacked the "establishment" for trying to focus attention elsewhere while the population of Gaza suffered, and accused Israel of committing genocide.

"We are not the story. Genocide is. As they profit from genocide, they use an 'anti-terror law' against us for displaying a flag thrown on stage."

The charge follows growing scrutiny of Kneecap's performances after footage circulated online showing political statements made by the band on stage.

One video appeared to show a band member shouting: "Up Hamas, up Hezbollah."

- Confrontational style -

The band, known for its confrontational style and Irish nationalist, pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel messaging, has denied supporting violence or banned groups.

In April they debuted at the Coachella music festival in California, which band member DJ Provai said was another "milestone" for the group, whose signature look is wearing balaclavas.

They said they had been surprised by the success of the film.

But Mo Chara told AFP in April: "It's an international story of languages being oppressed, because obviously the first protocol for colonialism is to eradicate the language and the culture."

Another video clip under investigation by London police appears to show the band urging an audience to kill British Conservative MPs.

Kneecap later issued an apology to the families of Labour Party MP Jo Cox, who was killed in 2016, and Conservative lawmaker David Amess, who was killed in 2021.

The rows have turned attention on concert promoters, with a slew of European and US dates lined up for the group this summer.

The trio were also scheduled to perform at a festival in London on Friday. It was not immediately clear if that concert would go ahead.

Several of their gigs have already been cancelled, including three in Germany and one in the UK, while the British government has urged the Glastonbury festival organisers to "think carefully" about the band's planned appearance there next month.

Kneecap's manager Dan Lambert said there was a coordinated campaign to target Kneecap for their outspoken views on Israel's offensive on Gaza.

Israel has repeatedly denied charges of genocide in the occupied Palestinian territory.

Prominent British musicians and groups including Paul Weller, Massive Attack, Brian Eno, Pulp and Primal Scream have also defended Kneecap and signed a letter denouncing a "concerted attempt to censor and de-platform Kneecap".

M.AlAhmad--SF-PST