A woman accused of expressing support for Hamas told a crowd the proscribed organisation is “fighting for freedom”, a court has heard.

On Monday, Bristol Crown Court heard Kwabena Devonish, 27, is alleged to have said she was “sick” of “being told to condemn Hamas”.

Devonish is accused of having expressed an opinion or belief in support of the proscribed organisation during a speech in November 2023.

The court heard Devonish had attended a march in Cardiff and addressed a crowd gathered at Ty William Morgan in Central Square.

Devonish was arrested in January 2024 after a video of the speech was posted on social media.

In a video played to the jury, Devonish said: “I would never condemn the resistance of Palestinians because their resistance is due to the occupation.

“So, if you want to talk about violence, if you want to talk about atrocities, then point the finger to the state of Israel.

“I am sick of being told to condemn Hamas, when Hamas are fighting for freedom, Hamas are fighting for the people.”

The court heard the march took place on November 11 2023 and was attended by about 500 people.

Diana Wilson, prosecuting, said: “There is no dispute this is Miss Devonish (in the video) and she is addressing a crowd, likely at the end of the march.”

Devonish, of Pentrebane, Cardiff, is charged with expressing an opinion or belief that is supportive of a proscribed organisation, namely Hamas, contrary to the Terrorism Act 2000.

The trial continues.

Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary has appeared in court charged with three terror offences relating to banned organisation Al-Muhajiroun, which he is accused of leading.

The 56-year-old, from Ilford in East London, is accused of directing a terrorist organisation, being a member of a proscribed organisation and addressing meetings to encourage support for a proscribed organisation.

Appearing in the dock of Westminster Magistrates Court on Monday wearing a black jacket and glasses, he spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address.

He was not asked to enter any pleas to the alleged offending during the hearing, which lasted around 30 minutes.

Khaled Hussein, 28, from Edmonton in Alberta, Canada, appeared separately at the same court charged with one count of being a member of a proscribed organisation.

His lawyer said he would not be entering any pleas.

The court heard that the case relates to “an extreme form of Islam”.

Choudary is alleged to have provided lectures to the Islamic Thinkers Society, which is Al-Muhajiroun “for all intents and purposes”, the court heard.

Al-Muhajiroun has been banned in the UK since 2010 but has continued under “many names and guises”, the court heard.

Bespectacled Hussein spoke only to confirm his name, date of birth and address in a Canadian accent during a 10-minute separate hearing.

He is alleged to have been in “close contact” with Choudary online to provide “a platform” for the group’s views for around two years.

Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring remanded them into custody until they appear at the Old Bailey on August 4.

Choudary was arrested in east London on July 17, while Hussein was detained at Heathrow after arriving on a flight the same day.

Nick Price, from the Crown Prosecution Service Counter Terrorism Division, said: “The CPS has authorised charges in relation to Anjem Choudary and Khaled Hussein under the Terrorism Act.

“The charges relate to the proscribed organisation Al-Muhajiroun, also known as the Islamic Thinkers Society.

“Criminal proceedings against Mr Choudary and Mr Hussein are now active and they each have the right to a fair trial.”

Read more: Radical Islamist preacher Choudary guilty of inviting support for IS

A federal appeals court on Tuesday said printing “In God We Trust” on U.S. currency is constitutional, citing its longstanding use and saying it was not coercive.

The 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in St Paul, Minnesota rejected claims by 29 atheists, children of atheists and atheist groups that inscribing the national motto on bills and coins violated their First Amendment free speech and religious rights.

While other courts have allowed the motto’s use on currency, Circuit Judge Raymond Gruender said it also did not constitute an establishment of religion under a 2014 Supreme Court decision requiring a review of “historical practices.”

Gruender said the Constitution lets the government celebrate “our tradition of religious freedom,” and that putting the motto on currency “comports with early understandings of the Establishment Clause” without compelling religious observance.

“In God We Trust” began appearing on U.S. coins in 1864 during the Civil War, a period of increased religious sentiment, and was added to paper currencies by the mid-1960s (https://www.treasury.gov/about/education/Pages/in-god-we-trust.aspx).

President Dwight Eisenhower signed a law making the phrase the national motto in 1956.

Tuesday’s 3-0 decision upheld a Dec. 2016 lower court ruling, though one judge refused to join part of its analysis.

The federal appeals court in Chicago upheld the use of “In God We Trust” on currency in May.

Michael Newdow, a lawyer for the plaintiffs, in an email called it “utterly revolting” that “the history of governmental denigration of a suspect class should trump [the] principle” that neutrality be the “touchstone” for analysing claims under the First Amendment’s Establishment Clause.

Newdow is also known for unsuccessful litigation challenging the inclusion of “under God” in the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance.

Gruender has been on U.S. President Donald Trump’s list of potential candidates for open Supreme Court seats.

The case is New Doe Child #1 et al v U.S. et al, 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 16-4440.

Users who publish content freely available on the Internet should get consent from the person behind it, Europe’s top court ruled on Tuesday in a boost to the bloc’s creative industries.

Regulators say they lose out because illegal uploads of works on big online platforms such as Google’s YouTube and Vivendi’s video-sharing site Dailymotion deny publishers, broadcasters and artists of revenues.

The Court of Justice of the European Union (ECJ) ruling came after a secondary school student in Germany downloaded a photograph of Cordoba from a travel website to illustrate a presentation which was then published on the school website.

Photographer Dirk Renckhoff then sued the city of Waltrop and North Rhine-Westphalia for copyright infringement and 400 euros in damages. A German court then sought guidance from the Luxembourg-based ECJ, which went against a non-binding opinion from its adviser four months ago.

“The posting on a website of a photograph that was freely accessible on another website with the consent of the author requires a new authorisation by that author,” judges said.

“By posting on the internet, the photograph is made available to a new public,” they said.

Judges said posting a work online was different from hyperlinks which lead users to another website and thus contribute to the smooth functioning of the internet.

“Subject to the exceptions and limitations laid down exhaustively in that directive, any use of a work by a third party without such prior consent must be regarded as infringing the copyright of that work,” the court said, referring to EU copyright legislation.

The ruling could result in a rash of litigation as artists assert their rights, said Nils Rauer, a partner at Frankfurt-based Hogan Lovells.

“The idea is that we as a society should appreciate and protect copyrighted works. The overall intention of the Commission, European Parliament and the court is to create respect for copyright,” he added.

]]> 7651 https://www.faith-matters.org/french-judge-steps-up-le-pen-investigation-over-islamic-state-tweets/ Sat, 03 Mar 2018 16:32:58 +0000 https://www.faith-matters.org/?p=7155

A judge placed France’s far-right leader Marine Le Pen under formal investigation on Thursday on suspicion of disseminating violent images over tweets she posted of Islamic State executions, a move she indicated was politically motivated.

The investigation relates to three graphic images of Islamic State executions she posted on Twitter in December 2015, including the beheading of American journalist James Foley.

“If they are trying to silence me, they will not succeed,” Le Pen told news channel LCI. She had denounced an earlier stage of the investigation as “political interference”.

Under France’s legal system, being formally placed under investigation often – but not always – leads to a person being sent to trial.

The judge’s decision to step up the investigation comes a little over a week ahead of the National Front’s annual congress, where she is expected to lay out how she plans to rebuild the battered party after her thumping defeat at the hands of President Emmanuel Macron in last year’s election.

It is, though, unlikely to affect her popularity with party loyalists.

Other ongoing investigations, including one into allegations her party misused European Union funds to pay parliamentary assistants and another into the financing of past election campaigns, have not dented her appeal among the National Front faithful. She has denied any wrongdoing in both cases.

Party stalwarts rallied around Le Pen on social media.

“@MLP_officiel placed under formal investigation for spreading photos of Islamic State executions. No, it’s no good telling the truth,” tweeted Bryan Masson, a National Front official from the southern Alpes-Maritimes region.

If the investigation proceeds to a trial, Le Pen could face a maximum sentence of several years in jail and a 75,000 euro fine if convicted.