Four accused of shouting antisemitic rape threats from car convoy deny charges

Four men charged with yelling sick antisemitic abuse from a car in a ‘Convoy for Palestine’ entered not guilty pleas at a hearing this week.

Mohammed Iftikhar Hanif, 27, Jawaad Hussain, 24, Asif Ali, 25 and Adil Mota, 26, all from Blackburn, Lancs, were all said to be part of a convoy travelling through St John’s Wood earlier this year, are accused of engaging in racist abuse.

They appeared for a plea and trial preparation hearing at Wood Green Crown Court on Wednesday, where they denied the charges.

The four are all charged with using threatening, abusive or insulting words, or behaviour, with intent, likely to stir up racial hatred on 16 May, and all issued not guilty pleas.

The abuse followed simmering tensions due to the political situation in Israel and the Palestinian territories.  Thousands of people had been marching through Central London in support of the Palestinians, amid ongoing fighting between Israel and militants in Gaza.

The next hearing will be on 11 February 2022, with  the defendants not required for that hearing.