The Palestinian group Hamas has instructed British lawyers to appeal to the UK government to reverse its 2021 decision to designate it as a proscribed terrorist group.

In a 106-page application submitted to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper on Wednesday, the group argues it is not a terrorist organisation but “a Palestinian Islamic liberation and resistance movement whose goal is to liberate Palestine and confront the Zionist project”.

The legal filing, submitted by Riverway Law, claims the 2021 decision “pursued explicitly political objectives by a politically compromised Secretary of State”.

The lawyers involved stressed that Hamas did not pay them or the experts who provided evidence for the submission, as it is illegal to receive funds from a group designated as a terrorist organisation.

Dr Mousa Abu Marzouk, the head of International Relations and Legal Office of the Political Bureau, is fronting the application.

“The British government’s decision to proscribe Hamas is an unjust one that is symptomatic of its unwavering support for Zionism, apartheid, occupation and ethnic cleansing in Palestine for over a century,” he said in the witness statement.

“Hamas does not and never has posed a threat to Britain, despite the latter’s ongoing complicity in the genocide of our people.”

Drawing historical parallels with IRA and ANC

In its legal submission, Hamas acknowledges its actions may fall within the broad definition of ‘terrorism’ under the Terrorism Act 2000, but argues this also “covers all groups and organisations around the world that use violence to achieve political objectives, including the Israeli armed forces, the Ukrainian Army and, indeed, the British armed forces.” 

“Of course, not all such groups are proscribed as ultimately that is a question of discretion for the Secretary of State.”

The group claims the proscription impedes its ability to broker a political solution to the conflict, stifles conversations about securing a long-term political settlement and criminalises ordinary Palestinians in Gaza.

Drawing parallels with the African National Congress (ANC) in South Africa and the IRA in Northern Ireland, the application “asserts that proscription undermines the possibility of a peaceful settlement”.

The group also argues that the designation infringes fundamental rights and disproportionately impacts freedom of speech, adding “that Hamas’s continued proscription is contrary to Britain’s obligations under international law. This includes their obligation to not be complicit in a genocide, crimes against humanity, and apartheid, but also to bring an end to the unlawful occupation and respect the dignity of the Palestinian people.”

The UK proscribed Hamas’s military wing in 2001, before extending the designation to include its political wing, which governs Gaza, in 2021.

Image: Riverway Law twitter