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Khaled Hajsaad was found guilty of “arousing suspicion he was supporting a proscribed terrorist group” after he was caught wearing a Hamas headband to a pro-Palestine protest in central London, according to a Crown Prosecution Service statement on Thursday.
He was described as an asylum seeker who arrived in the UK a year ago by the UK media.
Hajsaad, a resident of Birmingham, was at a protest in London on November 25, 2023, when he was reported to the police for wearing a green headband with the Islamic profession of faith (Shahada) printed on it.
Hamas’s primary color is green, and it uses the Shahada as a symbol; on this basis, London police seized the headband and arrested Hajsaad on the spot.
Saudi or Hamas flag?
He admitted to wearing the headband but denied supporting Hamas and claimed that the headband was actually the Saudi Arabian flag, which is similar in appearance.
During the proceedings, Hajsaad’s lawyer argued that the headband, due to the Shahada, expressed his client’s faith and that he had a right to express that faith.
The prosecution’s expert in Arabic and Islamic studies disputed this, saying that in the context of a pro-Palestinian march, it would not be expected to see flags or other national symbols of Saudi Arabia, given that it is not normally associated with the Palestinian cause.
The expert elaborated, saying that the headband lacked the sword found on the Saudi flag, which is further evidence that it was not a Saudi headband.
Hajsaad was convicted of wearing an item of clothing to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is a supporter of a proscribed organization, in this case, Hamas.
“Wearing such items in public creates a risk of encouraging others to support Hamas,” the CPS said in a statement.
He is expected to be sentenced in June.
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