Extremists who join or invite support for now banned terror group Hizb ut-Tahrir will "face the full force of the law," Home Secretary James Cleverly said on Friday.
He branded it a "vile, antisemitic" group as the order to proscribe it took effect.
Mr Cleverly added "It has no place in our country."From today, any member of the group - or anyone who invites support for it - will face the full force of the law."
Hizb ut-Tahrir promotes terrorism. It is a vile, antisemitic group.
— James Cleverly🇬🇧 (@JamesCleverly) January 19, 2024
It has no place in our country.
From today, any member of the group - or anyone who invites support for it - will face the full force of the law.
Earlier, security minister Tom Tugendhat had stressed that Jewish people should not be afraid to come into central London as Parliament backed banning Hizb ut-Tahrir.
The Islamist political group has organised rallies which took place on the streets of the capital alongside pro-Palestinian marches in recent months, following the outbreak of the Israel-Hamas conflict.
MPs and peers on Thursday backed proscribing it as a terrorist organisation.
Mr Tugendhat signed the proscription order on Thursday evening, paving the way for the ban to come into force on Friday.
This evening I signed the order proscribing Hizb ut-Tahrir.
— Tom Tugendhat (@TomTugendhat) January 18, 2024
Belonging to or inviting support for this group is now a criminal offence. pic.twitter.com/KdKUnkfCPU
The move will mean belonging to, inviting support for and displaying symbols of the group in public will be a criminal offence with a possible jail sentence of up to 14 years.
In the Commons, Mr Tugendhat said the proscription order would cover the entire global organisation, as well as all regional branches including Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain.
He claimed the group engaged in “homophobic and antisemitic discourse”, that it “plays the mood music to which other terrorists dance”, and had glorified Hamas’s attacks on Israeli citizens on October 7.
He told MPs: “This proscription will serve as a reminder that the United Kingdom does not and will never tolerate the promotion of or encouragement of terrorism.
“It will send the message that promoting or encouraging Hamas’s sickening attack on October 7 is utterly unacceptable and at odds with the values of this country.”
During the debate, Brigg and Goole Tory MP Andrew Percy made the wider point that the majority of people who attend the pro-Gaza marches are peaceful but they were blighted by the behaviour of a minority.
He added: “The Jewish community in my region has expressed to me its concerns about the small marches we have had in my area, and of course Jews in London are afraid to come into central London when the marches are taking place, precisely because of that behaviour, which I believe is by a minority.”
Mr Tugendhat responded: “Jews should not be afraid to be in London at any time, and certainly not on a Saturday or a Sunday, when many people want to go out shopping or just to be with friends and family.”
He stressed that some of the marches could be “radicalising moments in themselves”, an issue about which the police and Home Secretary James Cleverly had been alerted.
Hizb ut-Tahrir organised a rally in the capital in October following Hamas’s terror attack on Israel in which more than 1,200 people were murdered.
The slaughter triggered Israel’s military onslaught on large parts of Gaza which has now seen more than 23,000 people killed, according to health officials in the largely besieged strip.
Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing growing criticism for the scale of the destruction and deaths from his forces’ Gaza invasion.
Protesters at the Hizb ut-Tahrir demonstration in London in the autumn were encouraged to chant: “Jihad!” and carried banners referring to “Muslim armies” during the marches.
The protest ran alongside the much larger demonstration organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Metropolitan Police officers said they reviewed footage from the Hizb ut-Tahrir gathering in which a man could be seen chanting “jihad, jihad” but came to the conclusion that there were no “offences arising from the specific clip”.
Hizb ut-Tahrir has already been banned in Germany, as well as in several Middle East and Asian countries.
With headquarters in Lebanon, the group also operates in at least 32 countries including the UK, United States, Canada and Australia.
Shadow Home Office minister Dan Jarvis said banning the group was “the right thing to do for our national security”.
He added: “For too long, the public has been exposed to their extremist ideology, their glorification of terrorist activity and their core aim of overthrowing our democratic system of government to replace it with an Islamist theocracy.”
In a statement, Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain has denied it is antisemitic or encourages terrorism and said it would seek to challenge the proscription “using all available legal means”.
During the Commons debate, Conservative former minister Sir Desmond Swayne suggested there should be a “static location” for protests.
The New Forest West MP said: “People are being inhibited from attending central London at weekends now and it’s having a significant impact on commerce and shopping and the West End.”
Mr Tugendhat said his colleagues would come back to Sir Desmond on the issue.
Met Police Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor said: “We absolutely recognise the passion and strength of feeling sparked by the ongoing conflict and we respect the right of those who wish to protest and have their voices heard to do so.”
She added: “These protests and the offences connected to them have been widely reported on in the media and have been the subject of extensive discussions online.
“It is really disappointing that, despite this, we have continued to see people turning up carrying placards, wearing clothing or chanting slogans that, certainly by this stage, they should know will cause alarm or distress to others.
“I would appeal to those attending any protest event, whether this weekend or in the future, to consider how their actions will impact on the safety and security of others.
“Those who intentionally push the limits of what may cross the line into criminality will face the consequences.”
