The UK’s legal watchdog has launched an investigation into a solicitor representing Hamas in its bid to be removed from Britain’s list of banned terrorist groups, following a complaint by Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA).
The Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA) confirmed the probe into Fahad Ansari, director of Riverway Law, after CAA’s Online Monitoring and Investigations Unit uncovered a series of inflammatory posts from his X account.
Ansari is acting on behalf of Hamas in its application to the Home Secretary for deproscription under UK terrorism legalisation. The Islamist group has been proscribed in full in the UK since 2021.
In one of the social media posts flagged by CAA, Ansari appeared to celebrate the bulldozer used to breach the Israeli border on 7 October – an image widely associated with the massacre of Israeli civilians – calling it “one of the most iconic, hopeful images of our time”. He also described Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin as a “hero” and wished that “every one of [the resistance’s] bullets hits their targets”.
Other posts compared Israel to Nazi Germany, saying: “If these people were alive in the 40s, they would have sided with the Nazis.” He also praised “the intifada” and “the Palestinian resistance” – terms long associated with violent terror campaigns against Israelis.
Photo Credit: CAA
A spokesperson for CAA said: “This rhetoric is stomach-churning, even if it befits a lawyer who represents Hamas. It is ludicrous that someone with views like these is permitted to practice in the legal profession. If he is found to have breached his obligations as a solicitor, the SRA must take firm action.”
The complaint raises questions about potential breaches of professional standards in relation to conduct on social media and public statements made by legal representatives in politically charged cases.
Ansari’s firm has not responded to a request for comment. The SRA does not comment on the details of ongoing investigations but confirmed that it is assessing the concerns raised.
The government’s deproscription process allows applications for terrorist groups to be removed from the banned list. Any decision ultimately rests with the Home Secretary, with input from legal and security advisers.
Campaign Against Antisemitism has described the wider effort to de-list Hamas as “grotesque”, citing the group’s long-standing commitment to violence and its explicit targeting of Jewish civilians.
