Tommy Robinson has admitted two breaches of contempt laws at a court hearing this morning.
The 41-year-old, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, pleaded guilty to breaching a 2021 High Court order barring him from repeating libellous allegations against Syrian refugee Jamal Hijazi who successfully sued him.
Robinson, wearing a grey suit and open neck blue shirt, nodded when asked at Woolwich Crown Court in south London whether he admitted the breaches, on what was intended to be the start of a two-day hearing establishing what happened.
He faces a potential jail term when he is sentenced by judge Mr Justice Johnson later today.
Robinson was supported in the public gallery by around 24 people, with a further 30 waving union flags at gates outside the building, flanked by a dozen police officers.
Tommy Robinson, also known as Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, has admitted contempt of court
Robinson sitting beside a dock officer in court today, in a sketch drawn by Elizabeth Cook
Supporters of the far-right activist gathered outside Woolwich Crown Court this morning
The breaches include broadcasting a film titled Silenced, at a demonstration in Trafalgar Square in July – one of six actions claimed to have breached the injunction between June and July this year.
The film is also pinned to the top of his X account.
Sasha Wass KC, for Robinson, told the court that the film’s production was funded by Infowars, a company run by American Alex Jones, who has claimed that the 2012 Sandy Hook school massacre was a hoax.
Mr Hijazi successfully sued Robinson after the then-schoolboy was assaulted at Almondbury Community School in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, in October 2018.
Robinson made false claims after a clip of the incident went viral, including about Mr Hijazi attacking girls in his school, leading to the libel case.
Mr Justice Nicklin ordered Robinson to pay Mr Hijazi £100,000 in damages and his legal costs, as well as making the injunction preventing Robinson from repeating the allegations he made against the then-teenager.
In a separate matter, Robinson has also been charged with failing to provide the PIN to his mobile phone under Schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act.
It follows his arrest in July at a port in Kent where he was accused of failing to comply with demands from police.
Under schedule 7 of the Terrorism Act, officers are allowed to stop anyone passing through a UK port ‘to determine whether they may be involved or concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism’.
He will appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on November 13 in relation to the latter incident.
Robinson posted a video of himself arriving at Luton Airport on October 20 and said he was surprised he had not been arrested.
A man wearing an English flag looks on as supporters of Robinson gather outside Woolwich Crown Court
Far-right protesters walk through London on Saturday in a rally endorsed by Robinson
He then handed himself in to police, accompanied by a large entourage and many supporters. He was remanded in custody ahead of today’s hearing.
On Saturday, thousands of his supporters gathered in central London for a protest which Robinson missed after he was remanded.
Demonstrators carried placards reading ‘Two tier Keir fuelled the riots’ – a reference to the widespread disorder across the UK this summer amid anger over the Southport dance class massacre, after misinformation on social media wrongly identified the suspected killer as a Muslim migrant – and chanted ‘We want Tommy out’ as they headed from Victoria station to Parliament Square.
Two people were arrested from the far-right march – one for a racially aggravated public order offence and a second for breach of the Public Order Act conditions.
A further pair were arrested for assault at the Stand Up To Racism counter protest.
Key landmarks close to the march routes – including the Cenotaph and the statue of Winston Churchill in Parliament Square – were sealed off from the public amid concerns about damage.
Aidan Eardley KC, representing the Solicitor General who brought the case, said a ‘resolution’ had been reached over the allegations.
Mr Eardley said: ‘The background to this matter starts in October 2018. Jamal Hijazi was a 15-year-old schoolboy, recently arrived in the UK from Syria.
‘He was attacked by a fellow pupil. That incident was filmed and published online. That film went viral. It attracted a great deal of commentary and suggests Jamal Hijazi was the victim, and the motivation was racial.
‘Mr Yaxley-Lennon took an interest in that, and according to him, got evidence that suggests Mr Hijazi was a violent bully at school and was getting his comeuppance.’
A young man holds a picture of Donald Trump as he marches through London as part of the crowd
Counter-protesters from Stand Up To Racism also came out on the streets of London
He said Robinson posted his videos explaining this on his Facebook account, which had around 1 million followers at the time.
Mr Eardley said Robinson was taken to court for libel by the schoolboy, but cited a defence of ‘truth’.
The judge found Robinson did not prove his case sufficiently to meet the legal threshold.
Mr Eardley said the ‘Silenced’ film was ‘a substantial piece of work’ lasting around 90 minutes, ‘entirely devoted’ to the Hijazi case.