Illustrative: Members of the UK's neo-Nazi National Action group rally in York, June 9, 2016. (Screen capture: YouTube)
LONDON — The leader of a banned British neo-Nazi group, National Action, has appeared in court for encouraging a plot to kill Labour lawmaker Rosie Cooper.
Christopher Lythgoe, 31, of Warrington, Cheshire, was charged with encouraging a 22-year-old man —who was not named for legal reasons — to commit murder. Both men are also charged with being members of National Action, a group banned under UK law.
Four other members of the group also appeared in court in London and were charged with being members of National Action.
Cooper, a member of Parliament from northwest England, said she wanted to thank the police “for keeping me, my staff and the public safe.”
Rosie Cooper MP (Courtesy)
Last year, Labour lawmaker Jo Cox was slain by Thomas Mair, a far-right extremist. National Action praised the killing.
Get The Times of Israel's Daily Editionby email and never miss our top stories
The UK government banned National Action in December, describing it as a “virulently racist, anti-Semitic and homophobic” neo-Nazi group.
The six suspects were among 11 people arrested across the UK on Sept. 27 in a sweep by counterterrorism detectives against suspected right-wing extremists. They are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London on Friday.
Advertisement
Help us report truthfully on social media
As a multimedia journalist, my job is to take the quality, fact-based journalism produced by The Times of Israel newsroom and make it accessible across every platform — from Instagram posts to podcasts to short-form videos.
This is how many, especially young people, consume news these days. But misinformation is rampant on social media. Our team at ToI produces accurate, responsible short-form reporting on Israel and the Jewish world.
If you believe in the importance of factual social media journalism, please consider joining our reader support group, The Times of Israel Community. Your financial support is essential to sustain responsible multimedia reporting.
We’re really pleased that you’ve read X Times of Israel articles in the past month.
That’s why we started the Times of Israel - to provide discerning readers like you with must-read coverage of Israel and the Jewish world.
So now we have a request. Unlike other news outlets, we haven’t put up a paywall. But as the journalism we do is costly, we invite readers for whom The Times of Israel has become important to help support our work by joining The Times of Israel Community.
For as little as $6 a month you can help support our quality journalism while enjoying The Times of Israel AD-FREE, as well as accessing exclusive content available only to Times of Israel Community members.
Thank you, David Horovitz, Founding Editor of The Times of Israel
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on Google
