Hamas has formally launched a legal effort to remove its classification as a terrorist organization in the United Kingdom.
On Monday, British lawyers representing the group submitted an application to UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, seeking to overturn the designation and arguing that Hamas should be recognised as a legitimate resistance movement.
The case, filed by Riverway Law on behalf of Dr. Mousa Abu Marzouk, who heads the International Relations and Legal Office of Hamas’s Political Bureau, claims the group’s designation violates international law and the rights of the Palestinian people. The application calls on the UK government to view Hamas as part of the broader Palestinian struggle for self-determination.
The legal team argues that Britain’s own historical role in Palestine — from the Balfour Declaration in 1917 to its modern-day policies — makes the UK complicit in the continued suffering of Palestinians. They allege that the UK’s proscription of Hamas as a terrorist organization contributes to the suppression of Palestinian resistance.
The filing also references the International Court of Justice’s recent interim ruling, which stated that it is plausible that Israel’s military actions in Gaza could amount to genocide. Based on that ruling, the application argues that the UK is legally obligated to avoid any complicity in such actions, including through the ongoing proscription of Hamas.
The legal case further asserts that Hamas’s classification contradicts Britain’s obligations to uphold international law, particularly with regard to opposing apartheid, genocide, and the illegal occupation of Palestinian land.
Hamas has been banned in the UK in its entirety since 2021, when the government extended the terrorist designation to include both its political and military wings. The group is already designated as a terrorist organization by several Western countries, including the United States, Canada, and the European Union.