London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Oct 01, 2025

Hamas to be declared a terrorist group by UK

Hamas to be declared a terrorist group by UK

Home Secretary Priti Patel has announced she is seeking to declare the whole of Palestinian militant group Hamas a terrorist organisation.

The military wing of the group which controls Gaza is already proscribed a terrorist organisation by the UK.

However, the change will also cover the Islamist movement's political wing.

It is a criminal offence to belong to or invite support for a proscribed organisation or wear clothing which could be seen to support the group.

The penalty is a maximum of 14 years in prison and/or a fine.

A proscription order laid before Parliament on Friday will now be debated and, subject to approval, will come into force on 26 November.

Hamas has carried out hundreds of deadly attacks against Israel and fired thousands of rockets at it during years of hostilities between the two sides. Israel, along with Egypt, has hemmed in the Gaza Strip since Hamas took over in 2006 and waged a series of wars against it. Human rights groups have accused both sides of committing war crimes.


Outlawing Hamas can be seen as the completion of a bit of unfinished diplomatic business. It brings the UK into line with the US and the EU.

The UK has long had a policy of "no contact" with Hamas's political wing. Banning the group in its entirety just makes this official.

And most engagement with Gaza - and the provision of humanitarian aid - has been done through international agencies such as the United Nations.

So, in reality, this decision may not change much in terms of Britain's engagement - or lack of it - with Hamas. But this decision should also be seen through a domestic UK prism.

Israel has been pushing for this for some time and the fact it is now happening reflects the deep contacts that Israel has within the Conservative Party.

The change also provides Conservative MPs with a new dividing line with those on the Labour left that have in the past shown sympathy for Hamas.

Ms Patel confirmed the news in a speech on security and counter terrorism in Washington DC.

"Hamas has significant terrorist capability, including access to extensive and sophisticated weaponry as well as terrorist training facilities, and it has long been involved in significant terrorist violence," she said.

"Hamas commits, participates, prepares for and promotes and encourages terrorism. If we tolerate extremism, it will erode the rock of security."

In response, Hamas accused the UK of supporting "the aggressors at the expense of the victims".

Israel welcomed the move as a "significant decision".

Foreign affairs minister Yair Lapid said: "There is no legitimate part of a terrorist organisation, and any attempt to differentiate between parts of a terrorist organisation is artificial."

The military wing of Hamas was proscribed by the UK in March 2001


Under the Terrorism Act 2000, the home secretary may proscribe an organisation if she believes it is concerned in terrorism.

Hamas is one of 78 terrorist groups proscribed in the UK and the third proscription order laid by the home secretary within the last year.

The group is already designated a terrorist organisation by the US, the EU and other powers.

Hamas' military wing was proscribed by the UK in March 2001.

At the time, the Home Office said the government's assessment was that there was a distinction between the political and military wings of the group but now assessed this distinction to be artificial.

Hamas originally had a dual purpose of carrying out an armed struggle against Israel - led by its military wing, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades - and delivering social welfare programmes.

But after 2005, when Israel withdrew its troops and settlers from Gaza, Hamas has also engaged in the Palestinian political process. It won the legislative elections in 2006, before reinforcing its power in Gaza the following year by ousting the rival Fatah movement of President Mahmoud Abbas.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Trump Administration Launches “TrumpRx” Plan to Enable Direct Drug Sales at Deep Discounts
Trump Announces Intention to Impose 100 Percent Tariff on Foreign-Made Films
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Singapore and Hong Kong Vie to Dominate Asia’s Rising Gold Trade
Trump Organization Teams with Saudi Developer on $1 Billion Trump Plaza in Jeddah
Manhattan Sees Surge in Office-to-Housing Conversions, Highest Since 2008
Switzerland and U.S. Issue Joint Assurance Against Currency Manipulation
Electronic Arts to Be Taken Private in Historic $55 Billion Buyout
Thomas Jacob Sanford Named as Suspect in Deadly Michigan Church Shooting and Arson
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
New York Man Arrested After On-Air Confession to 2017 Parents’ Murders
U.S. Defense Chief Orders Sudden Summit of Hundreds of Generals and Admirals
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
Trump Claims FBI Planted 274 Agents at Capitol Riot, Citing Unverified Reports
India: Internet Suspended in Bareilly Amid Communal Clashes Between Muslims and Hindus
Supreme Court Extends Freeze on Nearly $5 Billion in U.S. Foreign Aid at Trump’s Request
Archaeologists Recover Statues and Temples from 2,000-Year-Old Sunken City off Alexandria
China Deploys 2,000 Workers to Spain to Build Major EV Battery Factory, Raising European Dependence
Speed Takes Over: How Drive-Through Coffee Chains Are Rewriting U.S. Coffee Culture
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Ringo Starr Champions Enduring Beatles Legacy While Debuting Las Vegas Art Show
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Colombian President Petro Vows to Mobilize Volunteers for Gaza and Joins List of Fighters
FBI Removes Agents Who Kneeled at 2020 Protest, Citing Breach of Professional Conduct
Trump Alleges ‘Triple Sabotage’ at United Nations After Escalator and Teleprompter Failures
Shock in France: 5 Years in Prison for Former President Nicolas Sarkozy
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
BNP Paribas Abandons Ban on 'Controversial Weapons' Financing Amid Europe’s Defence Push
Typhoon Ragasa Leaves Trail of Destruction Across East Asia Before Making Landfall in China
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Big Banks Rebuild in Hong Kong as Deal Volume Surges
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Arnault Denounces Proposed Wealth Tax as Threat to French Economy
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Denmark Investigates Drone Incursion, Does Not Rule Out Russian Involvement
Lilly CEO Warns UK Is ‘Worst Country in Europe’ for Drug Prices, Pulls Back Investment
Nigel Farage Emerges as Central Force in British Politics with Reform UK Surge
Disney Reinstates ‘Jimmy Kimmel Live!’ after Six-Day Suspension over Charlie Kirk Comments
U.S. Prosecutors Move to Break Up Google’s Advertising Monopoly
Nvidia Pledges Up to $100 Billion Investment in OpenAI to Power Massive AI Data Center Build-Out
U.S. Signals ‘Large and Forceful’ Support for Argentina Amid Market Turmoil
Nvidia and Abu Dhabi’s TII Launch First AI-&-Robotics Lab in the Middle East
Vietnam Faces Up to $25 Billion Export Loss as U.S. Tariffs Bite
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Indonesia Court Upholds Military Law Amid Concerns Over Expanded Civilian Role
Larry Ellison, Michael Dell and Rupert Murdoch Join Trump-Backed Bid to Take Over TikTok
Trump and Musk Reunite Publicly for First Time Since Fallout at Kirk Memorial
Vietnam Closes 86 Million Untouched Bank Accounts Over Biometric ID Rules
×