Terrorism charges against Kneecap for ‘kill your MP’ comments to be dropped

The Met Police confirmed the news

The charge relates to alleged comments by the Belfast band calling for the death of Conservative MPs.

A video surfaced in April this year claiming to show a member of the group saying, "the only good Tory is a dead Tory. Kill your local MP," as well as shouts of "up Hamas, up Hezbollah".

The comments are reported to have dated form a concert in 2023, being the key reason why the charges were dropped.

Police said the offences were beyond the statutory time limit for prosecution.

However, the Met Police confirmed that this does not impact a separate terror charge against member Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the name Mo Chara, concerning accusations of displaying a Hezbollah flag.

A Met Police spokesperson said: “A thorough investigation has now been completed by detectives from the Counter Terrorism Command, which included interviewing an individual under caution and seeking early investigative advice from the Crown Prosecution Service.

“A range of offences were considered as part of the investigation. However, given the time elapsed between the events in the video and the video being brought to police attention, any potential summary only offences were beyond the statutory time limit for prosecution.

“Relevant indictable offences were considered by the investigation team and, based on all of the current evidence available, a decision has been made that no further action will be taken at this time.

“We understand the impact this decision may have on MPs and their staff.

"The safety and security of MPs is something that is taken extremely seriously across the whole of policing. MPs who may be concerned about their safety can contact their dedicated local Operation Bridger officer, who can provide further advice and support."