Liam O'Hanna, who performs as Mo Chara in the Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap, has been charged with a terror offence for allegedly displaying a flag in support of Hezbollah, the militant group and political party that emerged in Lebanon following the Israeli invasion in 1982, "in such a way or in such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is a supporter of a proscribed organization," said the Metropolitan police.
As the BBC reports, the musician's charge comes after an investigation by the UK's Counter-Terrorism Internet Referral Unit in the wake of the band's pro-Palestine messaging at Coachella in April, which prompted old concert footage to resurface — including a clip of a Kneecap performance from November 21 last year at the O2 Forum in London.
UPDATE (5/22, 9:12 a.m. ET): Kneecap have issued a statement denying the offence and promising to "vehemently defend" themselves.
"14,000 babies are about to die of starvation in Gaza, with food sent by the world sitting on the other side of a wall, and once again the British establishment is focused on us," they wrote. "This is political policing. This is a carnival of distraction. We are not the story. Genocide is."
Since the investigation began, its members have come forward to clarify that they "do not, and have never, supported Hamas or Hezbollah." (Showing support for either proscribed organization is banned and considered a criminal offence in the UK.) Numerous other artists have come forward to voice their support for Kneecap, including Massive Attack and Pulp.
O'Hanna is due to appear at Westminster Magistrates' Court on June 18.