Cotte ACQUITTED IN HAMAS CHARGE AT OLD BAILEY

What's happened

A student activist has been found not guilty of expressing support for Hamas in a 2023 SOAS speech. The acquittal ends a retrial after a 2024 verdict left one charge unresolved; prosecutors argued the remarks referenced Hamas, but the defense said she supported Palestinians’ right to resist. The case underscores tensions around free speech and anti-terrorism laws in Britain.

What's behind the headline?

Key angles

• The acquittal reinforces the challenge of prosecuting expressions tied to politically charged conflicts in Britain.
• The state has relied on linking comments to a proscribed group; the defense argued the talk was about Palestinians’ right to resist, not an endorsement of Hamas.
• This outcome may energize advocacy groups on both sides; observers say the ruling signals a higher threshold for criminalizing speech about Palestine.

What the ruling changes

• The safety of campus speech on controversial geopolitical issues is reinforced as activists avoid criminal liability for outspoken positions.
• Lawmakers may revisit how vaguely defined references to proscribed groups are interpreted in speech contexts.

How we got here

Cotte’s 2023 speech at SOAS expressed solidarity with Palestinian resistance and was followed by arrest in 2024. The retrial concluded after hours of deliberation, with the jury clearing her of the primary charge while previously acquitting on a second related charge.

Our analysis

The New Arab reports the retrial outcome and quotes supporters; Al Jazeera provides the verdict details and quotes from Cotte and advocates; The Times of Israel covers parliamentary reactions and broader geopolitics of the case.

Go deeper

• What does this mean for future campus debates about Palestine?
• Will there be changes to how UK law defines ‘reference’ to proscribed groups?
• How are rights groups responding to the verdict in Britain and overseas?

More on these topics

• Gaza - Wikimedia disambiguation page

  Gaza most commonly refers to: Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea Gaza City, a city in the Gaza Strip Gaza may also refer to:

• Hamas

  Hamas is a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist militant organization. It has a social service wing, Dawah, and a military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades.

• United Kingdom - Country in Europe

  The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom or Britain, is a sovereign country located off the north­western coast of the European mainland.

• Israel - Country in the Middle East

  Israel, formally known as the State of Israel, is a country in Western Asia, located on the southeastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea and the northern shore of the Red Sea.