plodder wrote: Mon Feb 16, 2026 4:33 pm
Even more than that, the idea that PA were threatening to smash weapons with hammers in a terrifying show of strength that would cause the government to cower in panic and do yet another U turn is just moronic.
They were literally just smashing weapons to stop civilians being killed, and you need hammers to do that properly. They were publicising it to encourage others who also opposed the war to join a movement. There's nothing remotely terrifying about any of it.
They attacked police officers with sledgehammers, injuring at least one. They used pyrotechnics and fireworks against staff at Elbit when trying to make their way in. They don't stop at just property, they go after people in their way.
IvanV wrote: Wed Oct 01, 2025 2:04 pm
The prosecution of the Kneecap singer Liam O'Hanna (an Irish spelling is also available) for supporting a designated terrorist organisation, ie (edited to correct error) Hizbullah, has been thrown out due to procedural failings by the police and/or CPS. The CPS appealed against the lower court's decision to throw it out, but lost. The reason was, too late to prosecute. They left it to the last day to prosecute, but seemingly forgot the correct type of departmental consent for such a case, which then came 2 days too late.
This has led to conspiracy/cock-up discussions. Was it politically convenient to let it fall? Was it an inside job to get it to fail? Or just a cock-up?
It is very curious in the first place that they left it so long to prosecute. What were they waiting for? Many others have been prosecuted for the same offence without delay. And seemingly unbelievable they didn't understand the correct consent mechanism and how long it would take, as many others have been so prosecuted. But then they did try to appeal against the very obvious out-of-time ruling. But perhaps that was always hopeless.
The CPS's second appeal has now been determined against them. It was on the very plain grounds that they were out of time and that's all there is too it. For all that the Acts have slight ambiguities here and there that you can make clever arguments about when something actually happened, as it is not perfectly clear what the something legally is, for all the CPS made "Please, please, miss, it's important, I was only very slightly late," type arguments, on any sensible reading it is ultimately quite plain that they were out of time, and that is all there is to it. Grauniad article
I think this is a most unfortunate piece of legislation. It seems likely that if the defendant had been prosecuted in time, they would have been found guilty. For it is quite clear that Hizbullah are despicable terrorists. But I would like the government to get egg on its face, not because the prosecution failed for incompetent procedural reasons, but in a way that makes them realise it is a stupid and overly broad piece of legislation. Probably the reason that the government left it so late is that even the government was rather in two minds about whether these performers should have the weight of this piece of legislation thrown at them for this particular act.