A British blogger was arrested following a post he made on social media, of a meme that read: F**k Hamas.
Pete North filmed his arrest at his home in Yorkshire on September 25, as officers told him he was being detained because he had "posted something on the internet" that a member of their hate crime division "didn’t appreciate." He was arrested "on suspicion of publishing or distributing written material intended to stir up racial hatred."
NEW: British blogger arrested for sharing a meme online that said 'F*ck Hamas.'
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) September 29, 2025
47-year-old Pete North has released a video of police telling him he was being arrested because he "posted something on the internet."
North Yorkshire police have confirmed the incident, saying… pic.twitter.com/f2eoAISsnD
The post featured a Palestinian flag with the words: "F--- Palestine. F--- Hamas. F--- Islam. Want to protest? F--- off to Muslim country and protest."
In support of Pete North pic.twitter.com/GtTcz4RMMs
— Fred #IStandWithIsrael (@Fredlondoner99) September 26, 2025
North confirmed in an interview with The Telegraph that while the meme contained 'offensive' references to Islam and Palestinians, the arresting officer seemed very specifically focused on the part that referred to Hamas.
"The officer in the interview said, ‘Well, firstly, let’s start with the meme. You posted a meme that said f--- Hamas,’" North said. "I then asked him, ‘Just so we’re on the same page, you do know who Hamas are?’ And he just… shook his head. He looked totally blank. If you’re going to arrest people for memes, you probably need to pay more attention to current affairs."
He then told The Telegraph that the officer seemed unaware of the atrocities committed by Hamas on October 7, 2023, even when North pressed him on it.
"Nobody should be facing police inquiries for posting memes on Twitter. The whole point of this exercise is not to win convictions. It’s to terrorize people like me into thinking twice about posting spicy memes," he concluded.
