A woman accused of expressing support for Hamas told a jury that she had “not known” the full details of what had happened on Saturday 7 October when she described the day’s events as a “victory”.
Hanin Barghouthi, 24, is accused of expressing an “opinion or belief” in support of the proscribed organisation in a speech she made at a rally at the Clock Tower, in Brighton, on Sunday 8 October 2023.
The offence was alleged to have happened the day after the group’s militants entered Israel, a trial at Kingston Crown Court previously heard.
At the same court today (Tuesday 3 March), Barghouthi told jurors that on the morning of Saturday 7 October she opened her phone to find a video on Instagram which appeared to show a yellow digger moving towards a wall in Gaza.
The defendant described the video as showing a “break out” and said she believed a group of civilians had found the vehicle, fixed it and driven it towards the wall to knock it down.
The defendant said that she thought the clip was a “hopeful video” and “didn’t believe there was more news other than the break out”.
Michael Mansfield, defending, asked Barghouthi if she had “heard anything else” about the events in Israel at the time of the speech.
Barghouthi said: “All I saw was the video and a few photos from different angles of the break out, of the digger. That’s all I thought it was.
“I had not heard about Nova, the music festival. I had not known about the hostages, people kidnapped. I only knew about the break out.”
The defendant said that had she known more about the music festival, kidnaps and killings, then “the only kind of event I would have gone to would be a vigil”.
She denied intending to support Hamas in her speech and said: “I do not support Hamas.
“All I knew, that I was speaking about, was the break out which I did not think Hamas was involved in.”
Barghouthi said: “I don’t believe (in) kidnapping people. I don’t believe that is fighting for freedom.
“I’m a woman. I believe women should have equal rights to men. I don’t believe that’s agreed upon by them.”
Barghouthi said that her politics “does not align” with Hamas.
The defendant said that until Saturday 7 October, she believed that Hamas was a “small rebel group” made up mostly of boys and young men.
When asked about the comments made in her speech that “yesterday was a victory”, she said: “When I say yesterday was a victory, I’m speaking only about the break out because that’s all I knew.”
When asked about her reference to freedom fighters, she said: “I mean it in the most simple terms – fighting for freedom … just people fighting for freedom.”
She told the court: “I would not use words like celebrate, beautiful, inspiring to speak about any other events on October 7. I only knew about the break out. That’s what I was using those positive words for.”
She added that it would be “awful” to use those words for the events that she is now aware took place on Saturday 7 October such as at the Nova music festival.
Barghouthi told jurors that all four of her grandparents were born in Palestine but after the war, in 1948, they “all had to leave for their own safety”.
The defendant, who was born in Jordan but moved to Newcastle as a child, said that, growing up, Palestine was “kind of a foreign place to me”, adding: “A place where I was from but not allowed to go to.”
Barghouthi told the court that, at the time of the rally, she was a sociology student at Sussex University.
She was also co-president of the feminist society and had been elected as an officer for the student union but didn’t continue in the role, the jury was told.
Mr Mansfield said that Barghouthi was a “young woman of good character” who is “without any background in terrorism whatsoever”.
He said that there was no mention of Hamas in the speech made by Barghouthi and said she was concerned with “human rights”.
He added: “What she’s on about is Palestine – not Hamas.”
Today, jurors were also shown messages sent by Barghouthi in a group chat during the early afternoon on Saturday 7 October.
She wrote that “it is an amazing day for Palestinian liberation”, adding: “Celebrate now mourn later.”
Barghouthi, from Brighton, previously pleaded not guilty to a single count of expressing an “opinion or belief” in support of a proscribed organisation, namely Hamas.
The trial continues.
It happened on the 8th of October. How could she not know what happened by that point? Think she’s telling porkies because she got caught.
‘For me, yesterday was a victory’
On the trial’s opening day, jurors were shown a video of the rally in which a crowd gathered around various people making speeches.
Ms Barghouthi can be heard telling the crowd that she is Palestinian, adding: “For me, yesterday was a victory.”
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2026/03/02/student-union-womens-officer-called-october-7-inspiring/
She further claims: “Revolutionary violence initiated by Palestinians is not terrorism. It is self defence.”
Should B&H News allow comment on an active criminal trial?
Why shouldn’t they? The jury shouldn’t be viewing anything to do with the trial online so therefore it matters not whether people comment on it.
Well, there are laws regarding sub judice that govern ongoing trials, reporting and comment.
Uni student, at a Palestine rally. But doesn’t know what’s been going on there when its practically the only thing being talked about… Pull the other one.
Absolutely !
(Contempt of Court Act 1981). In the UK, it is a criminal offence to publish material that creates a “substantial risk of serious prejudice” to active legal proceedings.
Is it PC to suggest she should be sentenced to live in the regime she supports?
Poetic justice