British far-right figure jailed for defamation of a Syrian refugee

Far-right British activist, Tommy Robinson received an 18-month jail sentence on October 28 for contempt of court by repeating false claims and defamation against a Syrian refugee, BBC News reports.

Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, better known by his alias Tommy Robinson, admitted 10 breaches of a High Court order made in 2021, during a hearing at Woolwich Crown Court, whilst being accused of “undermining the rule of law”.

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Judge Mr Justice Johnson said the breaches by Yaxley-Lenon, were not “accidental, negligent or merely reckless” and that the custodial threshold was “amply crossed”.

This week’s trial was the culmination of a saga that began in 2018 when Jamal Hijazi, a Syrian in West Yorkshire was caught on video being attacked by another teenager. Yaxley-Lenon shared this on Facebook accused Hijazi of being a violent thug. The Syrian teenager and his family later got death threats.

Three years later, Hijazi won £100,000 in damages when the court ruled Yaxley-Lenon’s claims against him amounted to defamation and imposed an injunction on the far-right figure, banning him from making the false claims again.

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However, in February 2022, Yaxley-Lenon began repeating the claims and went on to post a film online claiming he had been “silenced” by the state. This July, he showed the film to thousands of his supporters in Trafalgar Square, saying he would not be silenced.

A warrant was then issued for Yaxley-Lenon’s arrest after he failed to appear for a contempt of court hearing at the end of July.

BBC