Judge who 'decided not to punish three women guilty of pro-Hamas terrorist acts' is accused of 'liking' pro-Palestinian post

A JUDGE who decided 'not to punish' three women guilty of pro-Hamas terrorist charges previously appeared pleased with a social media post declaring 'Free Free Palestine'.

Jewish groups said the post may be evidence of bias and plan to report Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram to the CPS.

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Heba Alhayek, 29, Pauline Ankunda, 26, and Noimutu Olayinka Taiwo, 27, showed images of paragliders during a pro-Palestinian march in October last year.

But despite being found guilty of showing support for a terrorist group they avoided prison.

They were given a 12-month conditional discharge at Westminster Magistrates' Court this week, after Deputy Senior District Judge Tan Ikram said he had “decided not to punish them”.

Hamas militants used paragliders to enter Israel in attacks that killed more than 1,000 Israelis on October 7.

Writing about X, the campaign against Anti-Semitism said Mr. Ikram social media activity suggests that “there may be grounds to overrule his statement” based on “actual or apparent bias.”

The anti-Semitist charity added a screenshot of a LinkedIn post that appears to have been liked by Mr Ikram, which reads: “Free Free Palestine. To the Israeli terrorist, whether in the United Kingdom, the United States or of course in Israel: you can run, you can bomb, but you cannot hide – justice will come for you.”

The charity said it would share its findings with the Crown Prosecution Service, which “may wish to appeal the verdict”.

It also said they were considering “various legal options,” adding: “We are also filing a complaint with the Judicial Conduct Investigations Office.”

Speaking on behalf of Ikram, a spokeswoman for the Judicial Office press service said: “I didn't know I liked that post. If I did, it was a real mistake.”