Mo Chara’s defence team believe the case should be thrown out
The terror charge case against Irish rapper Mo Chara continues. His defence team believe it should be thrown out entirely.
Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, better known by his stage name Mo Chara, with his rap group Kneecap, has been facing court for the past several months after he allegedly displayed a flag representing the Shia-Islamist paramilitary group Hezbollah.
Irish Lawyer, Brenda Campbell KC, claims that the Attorney-General did not have permission to inform the defendant of his charges on May 21, and that consent was only given the following day. This means the charges may not have technically been brought within the usual six- month time period .
In Commonwealth countries, consent from the Attorney-General generally must be obtained for cases that have international ramifications. Prosecutor Michael Bisgrove claims that permission’s not actually required until the first court appearance.
Outside the courtroom, hundreds of Kneecap fans rallied in support of Mo Chara, who claimed the case is political and only exists to silence him and take eyes off of the conflict in Palestine.
“We know this story is more than just about me and more than Kneecap,” Mo Chara told the crowd
“This is a story about Palestine and us as a distraction from the real story.”
Fellow Kneecap members, Naoise Ó Caireállin and JJ Ó Dochartaigh (better known by their stage names Moglai Bap and DJ Próvaí) were present in support of Mo Chara.
On September 26, Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring will rule on whether he has jurisdiction to try the case. Until then, Mo Chara remains out on unconditional bail.
