CAGE files landmark legal challenge to UK’s proscription of Hamas

CAGE International has filed a formal legal application with the UK Home Secretary to remove Hamas from the government’s list of proscribed organisations, in a case described as a pivotal defence of political speech and civil liberties in Britain.

The submission, filed on 2 June, was not made on behalf of Hamas. It argues that the ban of the Palestinian group violates core rights under the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), including freedom of expression and protection from discrimination.

The application marks the first of its kind to focus explicitly on the discriminatory enforcement of counterterrorism laws, particularly their weaponisation against Britain’s Muslim communities. It highlights the widespread use of Section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000 to criminalise pro-Palestinian expression, whether through public speaking, social media posts, or peaceful protest.

“The chilling effect on political speech in support of Palestine is stark,” said Muhammad Rabbani, Managing Director of CAGE International. “The systematic suppression of pro-Palestinian speech threatens not only those targeted, but also the principles of open debate and political freedom upon which a free society must be based.”

Rabbani also stressed that “this case is about restoring a fundamental right and protection for our clients and communities — the right to speak freely, without fear of criminalisation.”

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The 100-page application includes 24 anonymised case studies spanning education, healthcare, immigration, and civil society. They document children as young as eight referred to Prevent, students facing disciplinary action, teachers and doctors suspended over social media posts, and individuals targeted with house raids, arrests, and visa revocations.

These measures, CAGE argues, form part of a “systemic and discriminatory” pattern of suppression that undermines free speech and violates Article 14 of the ECHR.

“The continued proscription of Hamas is violating long-established freedoms enshrined in Britain” Rabbani added. “It is enabling the expansion of authoritarian powers, all at the service of, and to defend the Zionist entity’s livestreamed genocide in Gaza.”

Commenting further about the case, CAGE’s director said that “Deproscription is about reckoning with a political and diplomatic reality in addition to remedying the discriminatory application and abuse of power.”

Since its reclassification in 2021 under former Home Secretary Priti Patel, who was forced to resign for carrying out unofficial meetings with Israeli politicians, the UK remains one of the few states to continue proscribing Hamas in its entirety, despite international recognition of its political role in Gaza.

The current Home Secretary, Yvette Cooper, has 90 days to respond to the application, after which CAGE can appeal to the Proscribed Organisations Appeals Commission.

CAGE has stated it is pursuing this legal route in its capacity as an advocacy organisation supporting individuals directly impacted by the proscription. It argues the case constitutes a litmus test for the status of civil liberties in the UK, warning that the erosion of free speech under counterterrorism legislation risks institutionalising fear and injustice.

Read: The petition to have Hamas removed from the UK ‘terrorist’ list lives on