Police arrest 365 people over Palestine Action support at protest
Some 365 people have been arrested for supporting banned group Palestine Action, with a further five detained for assaulting police officers, after protesters gathered in central London.
Hundreds attended Saturday’s demonstration in Parliament Square, organised by Defend Our Juries.
The Metropolitan Police said it would arrest anyone expressing support for Palestine Action.
In an update posted on X, Scotland Yard said 365 people had been arrested for supporting a proscribed organisation as of 6pm.
Assaults
A further seven arrests were made for other offences, including five for assaults on officers. None were seriously injured, the force added.
The Met earlier said the detained protesters were taken to prisoner processing points in the Westminster area, and those whose details could be confirmed were bailed, with conditions not to attend any further protest in support of Palestine Action.
Those whose details were refused, or could not be verified, were taken to custody suites across London.
Charity Amnesty International described the mass arrests under UK terrorism law as “deeply concerning”.
The crowd, sat on the grass inside Parliament Square, could be seen writing “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” on white placards at 1pm, with the vast majority remaining silent.
Placards
Several demonstrators carrying placards that read “Palestine Action terrorises Britain while Hamas hides in hospitals, schools and mosques”, briefly walked along the crowd before being led away by police officers.
Other clusters of protesters who were not holding placards gathered around the Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela statues in the square singing pro-Palestinian chants.
Officers were holding individual demonstrators sat on the edge of the grass before escorting them through swelling crowds to police vans parked on the edge of the square.
A separate group of officers attended a protester lying next to the fenced-off Emmeline Pankhurst statue.
They later began arresting protesters sat in the middle of Parliament Square.
The officers lifted the protesters – some sitting and some lying flat – off the ground before escorting them away.
Onlookers applauded the protesters and shouted “Shame on you” at the police making arrests.
Protesters who were still sat in the middle of Parliament Square stood up together at 2pm and held their placards in the air.
Criminal offence
One person was also arrested at a separate Palestine Coalition march, which set off from Russell Square heading to Whitehall via Aldwych and the Strand.
The arrest was “for a placard showing support for Palestine Action”, Scotland Yard said.
Membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison under the Terrorism Act 2000.
Earlier this week, the first three people to be charged with supporting Palestine Action in England and Wales were named.
Jeremy Shippam, 71, Judit Murray, 71, and Fiona Maclean, 53, have all been charged with displaying an article in a public place, arousing reasonable suspicion that they are a supporter of a proscribed organisation after their attendance at a previous demonstration last month.
Hundreds have been arrested in the wave of Defend Our Juries protests across the UK since the ban was implemented by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper last month.
Freedom to protest
A Home Office spokesperson said: “The Home Secretary has been clear that the proscription of Palestine Action is not about Palestine, nor does it affect the freedom to protest on Palestinian rights.
“It only applies to the specific and narrow organisation whose activities do not reflect or represent the thousands of people across the country who continue to exercise their fundamental rights to protest on different issues.
“Freedom to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy and we protect it fiercely.
“The decision to proscribe was based on strong security advice and the unanimous recommendation by the expert cross-government proscription review group.
“This followed serious attacks the group has committed, involving violence, significant injuries and extensive criminal damage.”
Sacha Deshmukh, chief executive of Amnesty International UK, said: “The protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists.
“We have long criticised UK terrorism law for being excessively broad and vaguely worded and a threat to freedom of expression. These arrests demonstrate that our concerns were justified.”
Support our Nation today
For the price of a cup of coffee a month you can help us create an independent, not-for-profit, national news service for the people of Wales, by the people of Wales.
People should have the right to peacefully protest. This is blinking wasted on police time and resources in a time when there are hardly either available.
Shame on Starmer’s Labour government. Peaceful protest is a right long upheld by all parties who believe in the principles of democracy. Starmer’s Stalinist unease with those who disagree with him is unacceptable and should be stopped.
Labour UK are tories in red, what did anyone expect? They are yet to restore the rights of Unions, yet to support workers rights, attack the poorest in our society and continue to give tax benefits to the rich, refusing to implement necessary wealth taxes and refusing to address the growing inequality in our society. Naturally they want to shut down protest. It was Labour who introduced the draconian anti terror laws, it was Labour who first decided to clamp down on peaceful protests in support of illegal wars. This is nothing but par for the course as the UK… Read more »
But shout your racist chants outside a hotel, try to incite rioters at hotels, name hotels (that is from politicians including Welsh ones), and media types mentioning hotels and trying to stoke hatred and riots (especially people living abroad), no arrests.
UKIP head reportedly doing a nazi salute. Not arrested.
But stand with people, peacefully, arrested cos Isreal/US has No10 by the unmentionables.
Starmer not going to see another term like this. Any Welsh Labour MP’s, I hear the picking are good picking potatoes when you are fired.
The Terrorism Act 2000 (which these protesters were arrested under) was designed to protect the public from those organisations seeking to do serious harm, organised killing of citizens. Organisations proscribed when the legislation was passed were the likes Al Qaeda and Continuity IRA. There was clear and evident organisation to murder. Whilst I do not support the activities of Palestine Action, that of vandalising property, there is no clear evidence that it’s members or supporters indulge in organised murder. Government over-reach.
I note this article reports without criticism Home Office unsupported claims that Palestine Action committed violence against the person resulting in injuries.