UK judge orders home secretary to explain opposition to Hamas de-proscription appeal

A British judge has ordered the UK home secretary to “get on with” explaining her opposition to Hamas's appeal to be removed from the list of proscribed terrorist organisations.

Hamas, currently proscribed in the UK, is appealing against this designation before the Proscribed Organisations Appeal Commission (POAC), an independent tribunal.

Last April, Mousa Abu Marzouk, the head of Hamas’s foreign relations office, instructed British lawyers to appeal against the UK’s 2021 decision by former Home Secretary Priti Patel to designate the movement as a terrorist organisation.

Four months later, in August 2025, Hamas lodged a second appeal to POAC after former UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper rejected the group’s request to be taken off the list of banned groups.

During Thursday’s proceedings, Justice Jonathan Swift, the chair of POAC, told government lawyers to respond to Hamas's appeal and to “clearly explain any reasons for delay” by 20 May.

Swift criticised the government for delays in progressing the case, noting that more than seven months had passed since Hamas formally lodged its appeal, and nearly a year has passed since the initial application was submitted.

The judge also criticised Mahmood and the Home Office’s insistence on applying to strike out the appeal altogether, accusing the department of not being open and honest to the court and stepping back from its “duty of candour” in relation to the application.

The judge signalled his frustration with the procedural delays in the appeal, and that the government’s strike-out application had yet to be made.

'Hindering' Hamas's political role

Thursday's proceedings were delayed by several hours after the court was unable to appoint a special advocate to handle secret evidence related to the case.

Marzouk was also scheduled to address the court via video link, but his appearance was cancelled due to the delays in court. 

In its original application, Hamas argued that the proscription hinders the group's ability to broker a political solution to the conflict, stifles discussions aimed at securing a long-term settlement, and criminalises ordinary Palestinians living in Gaza.

'It seems clear that the secretary of state’s strategy is to delay scrutiny of her decision-making for as long as possible'

– Franck Magennis, counsel for Hamas

Hamas's military wing, the Qassam Brigades, has been banned for more than two decades, but Patel decided in 2021 to extend the ban to the whole organisation, arguing there was no distinction between the political and military wings of the group.

Its submission included expert testimony from Oxford-based Israeli academic Avi Shlaim, who urged the UK to take a "more nuanced position on Hamas" by delisting it as a terror organisation.

When a proscribed group challenges its designation, the home secretary has 90 days to respond. Under Section 4 of the Terrorism Act, any organisation designated as a terrorist group may appeal to have its name removed from the government's list of banned organisations.

Individuals who have been impacted by a group's proscription can also apply to the home secretary to have it deproscribed.

The home secretary also has the discretion to add or remove any group engaged in armed conflict from the proscribed list.

Franck Magennis, counsel for Hamas, said the delays reflected a broader government effort to avoid scrutiny.

“It seems clear that the secretary of state’s strategy is to delay scrutiny of her decision-making for as long as possible,” Magennis told reporters.

“That is because these positions are increasingly being challenged, including in English courtrooms.”

Magennis added that the case would provide an opportunity to examine the government’s rationale for maintaining the proscription.

Hamas is represented in the proceedings by Magennis and barrister Daniel Grutters, with solicitor Fahad Ansari also advising the group. All legal representatives are acting on a pro bono basis, as it is illegal to receive any funds from a proscribed terrorist group.