A singer whose songs feature lyrics like “all the Jews will pay” and “we throw stones, small and big, at the Jewish demons” is billed to perform to an audience of thousands at an “outrageous” Muslim festival at London’s Exel Centre this weekend, the JC can reveal.

Abdel Fattah Owainat, a Jordanian vocalist who posted footage of terror attacks and training with a soundtrack of one of his own songs glorifying violence after October 7, is advertised on the festival website as focusing “on themes of faith, devotion, and spirituality”.

In 2020, the musician, whose music features on a compilation album called “Jihadi Hills”, was accused of performing traditional songs “in the name of” Hamas in an academic paper published by Edinburgh University Press.

A video showing rockets being launched by militants was accompanied by his song: “Strike, may my father and mother be sacrificed for you, oh fire, make the enemies drink humiliation… The lands are forbidden to enemies… Allah is the greatest, proclaim it, all the Jews will pay.”

Another of his lyrics runs: “Know me, O Son of Zion: no matter how strong you are, for my country, blood is cheap… We throw stones, small and big, at the Jewish demons.”

The revelations add to growing concerns about the upcoming Global Peace and Unity (GPU) festival – the largest of its kind in Europe, which has previously attracted audiences of 55,000 – and the alleged connections of a number of its speakers to extremism.

The Metropolitan Police’s logo was included on GPU material as a “supporting partner” of the festival. But last week the force had it removed after a complaint by the Policy Exchange think-tank. “The organisers were never given formal permission to use the Met logo,” a spokesman said. “We have asked for it to be removed from the website and any related materials.”

In response to the JC’s disclosures, the Met pledged to scrutinise the event. “We’ve passed the material you provided to officers for further assessment,” a spokesman said. “It isn’t typical for the police to determine whether private events take place or who is invited to speak.

“In the event of any allegations emerging from the event this weekend, we will of course take steps to assess whether any offences have taken place.”

Two Labour politicians, Naz Shah and Stephen Timms, have been billed to speak at the festival. Timms, the MP for East Ham, pulled out last week after reports that one of the speakers, the grandson of Nelson Mandela, was an “outspoken supporter of Hamas”. Naz Shah MP did not reply to the JC’s request for comment.

A spokesman for the Community Security Trust (CST) said it would be “irresponsible and reckless” for any respectable figure to endorse an event where fanatics may appear, while the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) branded the festival “outrageous”.

Lord Carlile, the former reviewer of government terror legislation, condemned the festival, demanding greater care and scrutiny from both the Exel Centre and the Metropolitan police to ensure that platforms are not given to extremists.

“It is very important to be extremely careful not to support or give a platform to those who support Hamas or any other such extremist behaviour,” Lord Carlile said.

The festival’s list of speakers includes many individuals who have courted controversy. These include Professor Ilan Pappé, an academic at Exeter University known for his radical anti-Zionism, and activist Ismail Patel, who has met Hamas leaders in Gaza and “saluted” the group for “standing up to Israel”.

Also listed are those who are less well-known in the mainstream. The social media theologian and self-proclaimed “race realist” Paul Williams, who has a million followers across X/Twitter and YouTube, is due to deliver a speech on Sunday.

He has hailed an interview with former BNP leader Nick Griffin – entitled “Jews, Zionism, the far-Right and Islam in Europe” – as “superb” and shared a video by the American white supremacist Jared Taylor about the “biological reality of race”.

The former far-right Dutch politician Joram van Klaveren, who sensationally converted to Islam in 2018 and has since shared a video denying that mass murder and rape took place on October 7, is also due to speak.

In addition, the festival is platforming a number of provocative American speakers. One of these, Medea Benjamin, is the co-founder of the radical activist group CodePink. On the day of the October 7 Hamas attacks, Benjamin tweeted: “The Israeli government can’t keep two million trapped in an open air prison in Gaza and not expect resistance”.

Following the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, she referred to the “murder” of Hamas’ “key negotiator”.

Since its inception in 2005, GPU conferences have been dogged by accusations of extremism. Past speakers include the cleric Zakir Naik, who was later banned from entering the UK, and CAGE activist Moazzam Begg.

The Muslim Council of Britain (MCB) is listed as a “supporting partner” of the event. In the 2010s, the then-Labour government cut off all dialogue with the MCB because of its alleged links to extremism. Successive governments, including the current one, have continued this policy of non-engagement.

Lord Carlile, the government’s former terrorism expert, said: “It is astonishing that the owners of Exel did not carry out due diligence as to who will speak at the event.

“One thing to examine is whether a duty should be imposed on the owners of venues, comparable with the new Martin’s Law, to require them to undertake due diligence so that people who support those who commit terror acts, such as Hamas, are not allowed to speak.”

He added: “So far as the police are concerned, they took their name off publicity for the event. But I remain very concerned that they were ever supporting the event in the first place.”

Ahead of the event, GPU organisers have warned to participants not to voice support for banned groups like Hamas, the Telegraph reported.

“Please be reminded that under English law, promoting or endorsing proscribed organisations is illegal and can result in prosecution, both for the speaker and the organisers,” they said in their guidance for speakers.

“While we encourage open discourse, and the purpose of the GPU Festival is to promote justice as a path towards peace and unity amongst diverse communities in the UK and internationally, please be mindful of these legal boundaries.

“If you’re unsure about specific content, err on the side of caution or consult our on-site legal advisor.”

A Community Security Trust spokesman said: “Given the horrendous increase in anti-Jewish hatred and extremism over the past year and the damage that has been caused to community relations, it is essential that the organisers of conferences such as this ensure that they do not provide a platform to anybody who has expressed antisemitic views or support for terrorism and violence, or who is likely to do so at this event.

“Similarly, it would be irresponsible and reckless for any respectable speakers, organisations or venues to be involved in an event where any such person may be speaking.”

A spokesperson for Campaign Against Antisemitism said: “This conference is outrageous. From celebrating the deadliest massacre of Jews since the Holocaust, to denying the horrors of that barbaric day, to alleged affiliations with the very group that carried out these atrocities, the speakers and performers at this event appear to tick every box of extremism.

“It beggars belief that the Met was a partner to this event, but this is the topsy-turvy world of Met Commissioner Mark Rowley, under whose watch extremists seem to have a free pass. Withdrawing its partnership is not enough: the Met should be scrutinising whether the event should even be permitted to take place at all, and should explain how it came to partner with it in the first place.”

Stephen Timms MP told the JC: “I had agreed to speak to GPU this weekend. However, a fortnight ago, The Times drew to my attention that one of the other speakers was the grandson of Nelson Mandela, and that he has been an outspoken supporter of Hamas.

“The subsequent report in The Times quoted me accurately as stating that I would not be sharing a platform with someone expressing those views, and – having confirmed that Mr Mandela had expressed the views attributed to him – I informed the GPU organisers that I would not be taking part.

“I understand that Mr Mandela will not now be taking part. However, having withdrawn, I have made clear to the organisers that I will not be speaking this weekend.”

Abdul Fattah Owainat, Paul Williams, Joram van Klaveren, Ilan Pappé, Ismail Patel, Medea Benjamin, GPU, the Exel Centre and the Home Office have been approached for comment.