THE UK’S DIRECTOR of prosecutions is to appeal against a judge’s decision to throw out the case against Kneecap rapper Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh.

The 27-year-old had been charged with the alleged display of a flag in support of proscribed terrorist group Hezbollah at a London gig last November, but the case against him was thrown out due to a technical error.

Last month, the chief magistrate ruled that the charge brought against Ó hAnnaidh was “unlawful” and that he had no jurisdiction to try the case.

Rapper Ó hAnnaidh, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara, was charged by post on May 21, but the permission of the Attorney General or the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had not been sought.

After a retrospective decision to seek permission, the Metropolitan Police re-sent the postal charge to Ó hAnnaidh the following day, but with May 22 considered the charging date, this meant it fell outside the six-month window in which defendants should be charged.

However, the Crown Prosecution Service has said today that it will appeal against the decision of the chief magistrate to throw out the case against the Belfast rapper.

Earlier, the UK attorney general had warned the Tory party’s justice spokesperson not to prejudice a future appeal on the decision to drop terrorism charges against Ó hAnnaidh.

Attorney general Richard Hermer suggested that shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick “carefully consider any further public comments to avoid any risk of prejudicing any future proceedings”.

In a letter to Jenrick, he added the Crown Prosecution Service is yet to make a decision on whether to appeal the decision of the chief magistrate.

Conservative Party shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick PA PA

Jenrick had previously written to the Attorney General calling for an urgent inquiry into the issue, claiming it “raised serious questions about the competence of all those involved”.

Responding, Hermer wrote that did “share” Jenrick’s disappointment in the outcome of the ruling.

“I am sure you are aware it is important for all senior politicians to ensure their public statements are supported by a basic understanding of the facts and the potential impact of their words on legal proceedings,” Hermer said.

Hermer said that Jenrick should be aware that the Crown Prosecution Service can still appeal the chief magistrate’s original decision against the rapper, before adding:

Until a decision is taken on that question, and the prosecution is in fact finally resolved, I am sure you will carefully consider any further public comments to avoid any risk of prejudicing any future proceedings.

Hermer added that he hoped that Jentrick would agree that it makes sense to await the Crown Prosecution Service decision on whether they intend to appeal, and the final resolution of any appeal “before conducting any sort of post-mortem” into the court case.

In the letter, referring to the delay to charge ó hAnnaidh, Hermer said he had provided consent “several hours” after being asked on May 22.

He wrote: “The CPS is operationally independent in its casework, and I am responsible for safeguarding this independent decision-making. This is crucial to ensuring that prosecutions in England and Wales remain free from political interference.

“A key exception to this is where the CPS applies for law officer’s consent to a prosecution where it is required by law. As has been widely reported, the CPS applied to my office for consent on May 22 2025, which was provided several hours later.”

With reporting by PA