LONDON

The terrorism case against Kneecap rapper Liam Og O hAnnaidh was dismissed by a UK court on Friday due to a technical error.

Liam Og O hAnnaidh was charged in May for allegedly displaying a flag in support of the banned organization Hezbollah at a gig in London in November of last year.

The 27-year-old rapper, who performs under the stage name Mo Chara​​​, denied the charge and has described it as political since then.

During Friday's trial, Judge Paul Goldspring told Woolwich Crown Court that the charge against O hAnnaidh was "unlawful" and "null," as the charge was not brought within the six-month time limit.

In his ruling, the judge outlined that permission was not given to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to consent to the prosecution until May 22, a day after O hAnnaidh was charged.

If May 22 was considered to be the date of the charge, that was six months and a day after the London gig where the offense allegedly happened, the BBC reported.

The police failed to ask the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in time to charge him.

"I find that these proceedings were not instituted in the correct form, lacking the necessary DPP and AG (Attorney General) consent within the six-month statutory time limit," he said.

The court had "no jurisdiction to try the charge," he added as the court erupted in cheers from his supporters.

In his message, shared by Kneecap, O hAnnaidh said this entire process was "never about me, never about any threat to the public, and never about 'terrorism,' a word used by your government to discredit people you oppress."

"It was always about Gaza. About what happens if you dare to speak up. As people from Ireland we know oppression, colonialism, famine and genocide," he said in the message shared on the US social media company X.

O hAnnaidh added: "If anyone on this planet is guilty of terrorism, it is the British state. Free Palestine!"