UK judge warns policeman he may face jail after sharing pro-Hamas images

LONDON (AFP): A UK judge warned a police officer on Thursday that he may face jail for terror offenses after he shared messages on WhatsApp supporting Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Chief magistrate Paul Goldspring told West Yorkshire Police constable Mohammed Adil that the crimes were “very serious” and that he could not “rule out custody” when he sentences him next month.

Adil, 26, who was first arrested on November 6 and had his mobile phone seized, appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London after being charged with the two offenses under the Terrorism Act on Monday.

He admitted two counts of publishing an image in support of Hamas, which is proscribed as a terrorist organization in the UK, after sharing two images on a messaging platform in October and November last year.

It came after Israel declared war against Hamas in Gaza in response to the militant group’s unprecedented October 7 attack.

Displayed on his WhatsApp “updates,” prosecutors said the image showed a Hamas fighter wearing a Hamas headband.

In one posting, Adil had added the following over the image: “Today is the time for the Palestinian people to rise, set their paths straight and establish an independent Palestinian state.”

It was said to be a quote from the leader of Hamas’s military wing, Mohammed Deif.

The second posting was captioned: “We will hold accountable all those who occupied our lands and Allah will hold accountable all those who remained silent against this occupation and oppression.”

That was said to be from Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for the group’s military wing.

The posts were accessible for 24 hours to Adil’s 1,092 WhatsApp contacts, according to prosecutors.

Two of his colleagues flagged them to senior officers, leading to an investigation by counter-terror police.

He is currently suspended from work.

Goldspring allowed the defendant to be released on conditional bail, ahead of sentencing him on June 4.

“I accept that at the time of the offending you were of good character,” he told Adil, adding he accepted that the defendant “didn’t put the pictures on WhatsApp against the public at large.”