Organisations issue statement in support of deproscription applications

London - Nearly 40 organisations have signed a joint statement supported the legal case to deproscribe _Harakat al-Muqawamah al-Islamiyyah _- better known as Hamas.

The organisations include youth and students’ networks, women and community collectives, and religious, media and advocacy organisations. 

Their support for desproscription follows two recent applications filed by Riverway Law in April and CAGE International this month to the UK Home Secretary. 

The organisations have indicated that the legal case being put forward for deproscription, presents “a crucial opportunity to smash a colonial tool”. This tool, they argue, is being used to “suppress journalists, activists and migrants in Britain” and “acts as an obstacle for Palestinian self-determination”. 

Anas Mustapha, CAGE International's Head of Public Advocacy said:

“This display of support from an array of civic groups is an important indicator of the growing public anger against proscription laws and how they are being used to target activists, teachers, healthcare workers, academics, university students and even school children who have expressed support for Palestine.”

The full statement is copied below:

Introduction 

Hamas's proscription curtails free speech and anti-colonial advocacy in Britain, by effectively criminalising both displays of solidarity and open debate about the Palestinian right to resistance. On several occasions, 'terror' label has been used to imprison activists and persecute journalists.

The ongoing legal challenge seeks to overturn this proscription, aligning with principles of justice, free speech, anti-racism, and international law in Britain.

Hamas was founded during the First Intifada in 1987, and emerged as a grassroots anti-colonial counterpoint to the PLO, which recognised the Zionist occupation and would later give up armed resistance in exchange for minimal political returns. Hamas is a political movement that was born in the context of the Zionist occupation of Palestine - in order to have any fair discussion about resolving the Palestine question, we must first be allowed to acknowledge some basic realities on the ground.

Hamas's armed wing meets the criteria of a lawful resistance movement under international law: since Palestinians are denied their right to self-determination by the Zionist occupation, they are legally entitled to use "all available means, including armed struggle" (UNGA Resolution 37/43.2) to liberate themselves.

Despite this, the British State designated Hamas's military wing, the 'Qassam Brigades', as a 'terrorist' organisation in 2001, and extended the ban to Hamas' political wing in 2021—a move rooted in political bias, not legal rigour, which has since stifled debate on Palestinian right of self-determination.

1. The Flawed Basis of Hamas’ Proscription  

The 2021 terror designation of Hamas's political wing by the then Home Secretary Priti Patel reflects a pro-Zionist bias, and not an objective analysis. Patel, a former officer at Conservative Friends of Israel (CFI), claimed that the full ban on Hamas was to protect British Jews, yet the ban weaponises antisemitism to justify maligning Palestinian political representations and their resistance to the Zionist occupation.

Contrary to Patel’s argument, Hamas is an anti-colonial movement and its operations are restrained within Palestinian territories, posing no threat for Britain's security or for British citizens, except those engaging in military service for the Zionist forces in Palestinian territories.

Historically, dialogue between the British State and the political wings of anti-colonial movements like the ANC and Sinn Féin were essential for de-escalating violence and achieving some political solutions to liberation struggles. Hamas's proscription prevents this by effectively banning dialogue between British citizens and the organisation.

In 2006, Hamas won the Palestinian legislative elections, agreed as “free and fair” by international observers. Since then, Hamas has governed the Gaza Strip while under catastrophic siege by the Zionist state. Britain's selective ban on a legitimate Palestinian political representation while promoting their preferred actors to shape Palestinian politics by force, undermines Palestinian democracy and targets the concept of resistance itself, as a practice and idea tied to self determination and sovereignty.

2. The Legal Challenge: Why It Matters 

Hamas' terror designation means that humanitarian organisations active in Gaza cannot engage with Gaza civil service institutions once they are run by the Hamas government, undermining Gaza's civil society and politicising access to aid. This includes UNRWA, which is facing dismantling under the pretext of employing individuals connected to Hamas.

This in turn contributes to dangerous narratives that maligns the entire population of Gaza for their democratic support for Hamas, a rhetoric that has been used to justify collective punishment and genocidal policies by the Zionist State in the Gaza Strip.

The British State actively trades with "Israel" — a state that has violated more than 900 UN resolutions favouring Palestine and has been blacklisted by the UN for harming children in conflict zones alongside ISIS, Boko Haram and Al Qaeda - all while punishing Hamas for 'terrorism'.

The ban on Hamas disregards the legitimacy of the movement while denying and criminalising Palestinian political agency, armed resistance, sovereignty, and right to self-determination.

Deproscription could lay the groundwork for fair debate and broader shifts, such as the assertion of Palestinian rights, ending the repression of pro-Palestine activism, and ending the intensified persecution that migrants, asylum seekers and refugees face by the carceral border regime for expressing support for the Palestinian resistance  - designed to criminalise both migration and liberation struggles.

3. Why Public Support is Crucial 

Legal battles alone cannot shift policy without mass public pressure. The UK government relies on the assumption that the public either supports or remains indifferent to Hamas’s proscription. A vocal movement can shatter this assumption.

Supporting deproscription is a stand against racism, colonialism, and the validity of international law and institutions.

Just as South African liberation movements were once wrongly labelled 'terrorist', history vindicates those who stand on the right side of justice. Public support accelerates this process.

4. How to Support 

1. Educate & Share: Visit [hamascase.com](https://hamascase.com/) to understand the legal arguments and share them widely
2. Pressure MPs: Demand representatives to review Hamas’s unlawful ban and support its deproscription. 
3. Mobilise Organisations: Trade unions, faith groups, and anti-imperialist movements should endorse the campaign
4. Challenge Media Bias: Expose media censorship and misinformation that equates Hamas with ‘terrorism’ and maligns the Palestinian struggle against colonialism. Demand accountability for the media and help amplify Palestinian narratives

Signatories:
1. Leeds Students Against Apartheid Coalition
2. CAGE International
3. Riverway Law
4. London For A Free Palestine
5. Al Fidai Media
6. Alkarama Palestinian Women’s Mobilization
7. City Action for Palestine
8. Student Federation for a Liberated Palestine
9. Anti Imperialist Front - London
10. Birmingham Liberated Zone
11. QMUL Action For Palestine
12. LSE Liberated Zone
13. Lincoln Students For A Free Palestine
14. Middlesex Palestine Solidarity Society
15. Parents For Palestine
16. Portsmouth Encampment
17. Caerdydd Students For Palestine
18. Nottingham Camp for the Liberation of Palestine
19. Social Rights Ireland
20. Edinburgh University Justice for Palestine Society
21. Greenwich Palestine Action
22. University of the West of England Islamic Society
23. Tariq El-Tahrir Youth and Student Network
24. York Palestine Encampment
25. Thanet 4 Palestine
26. The Preston People's Collective
27. Chorley 4 Palestine
28. University of Aberdeen Palestinian Solidarity Society
29. Sheffield Campus Coalition for Palestine
30. Islamic Human Rights Commission
31. Goldsmiths for Palestine
32. XR4Pal
33. We Are The People Liverpool
34. Unis Resist Border Controls
35. Bangor Collective For Liberation (BCL)
36. Oxford Against Genocide
37. Oxford Schools Palestine Solidarity
38. Huddersfield Freedom For Palestine
39. Peterborough PSC

_CC image courtesy of alisdare1 on Flikr _