A London court has thrown out a terror charge against a member of the Irish rap group Kneecap.

Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring said on Friday the case against Liam Og O hAnnaidh should be thrown out due to a technical error in the way the charge against the Belfast-based rapper was brought. The case has become highly charged with critics citing it as an illustration of a clampdown on free speech.

Goldspring ruled that O hAnnaidh, 27 – initially charged under the Anglicised name Liam O’Hanna and who performs under the stage name Mo Chara – had been charged after the six-month limit to bring such a charge, which can only be dealt with by the magistrates’ court.

“The charge is unlawful and null and this court has no jurisdiction to try the charge,” the judge said.

O hAnnaidh was charged

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