Police detain demonstrators in Parliament Square as nearly 900 are arrested at a protest against the Palestine Action ban in London. Image: Imperial Valley Press.
(The Post News) – Nearly 900 people were arrested during a protest in central London on Saturday against the government’s ban on activist group Palestine Action, the Metropolitan Police confirmed.
Police said 857 protesters were arrested under the Terrorism Act for supporting a proscribed organization, and 33 others were detained for public order offenses, including 17 for assaulting officers. The force said several officers were punched, spat at, and injured by objects thrown at them.
Approximately 1,500 people were at the Parliament Square rally, organized by campaign group Defend Our Juries (DOJ). Protesters carried placards stating, “I oppose genocide; I support Palestine Action.”
Police Condemn “Coordinated Violence”
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Claire Smart, who was the operational officer in charge, praised officers’ professionalism but condemned the violence. The violence we experienced was orchestrated and carried out by a group who were hell-bent on creating as much mayhem as they could,” she said. “Several of those individuals are now in custody, and we have begun to secure charges.”
She contrasted the protest with a 20,000-strong Palestine Coalition demonstration, which was peacefully held in a different area of London. Defend Our juries rejected the police claims, stating that the demonstration had been a peaceful protest against an “unenforceable” ban.
“One thousand five hundred people peacefully holding cardboard placards in silent dignity sends a very strong and clear message to the new home secretary,” the group said. The campaign also noted that those arrested were priests, war veterans, grandchildren of Holocaust survivors, retired teachers, and health workers.
Amnesty International UK, which had observers, supported DOJ’s account. The rights organization said its monitors witnessed peaceful protest and criticized the police for using anti-terror legislation to suppress free speech.
Palestine Action Ban
The Home Office banned Palestine Action in July after the group claimed responsibility for the damaging of two RAF Voyager aircraft at Brize Norton. Being a member or supporter of the group now carries a risk of up to a 14-year sentence. Recently appointed Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood defended the arrests, saying, “Supporting Palestine and supporting a proscribed terrorist organization are not one and the same.”
Defence Secretary John Healey also supported police action, stating, “When people break the law, there have to be consequences. Protest is welcome, but it does not require support for Palestine Action.” Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori has legally challenged the ban on the grounds that it illegally criminalizes dissent. UN experts have also warned that classifying protests that involve property damage as terrorism would put free expression at risk.
Meanwhile, protests against the ban were staged in Edinburgh and Belfast. Two men aged 82 and 67 were charged with terror offenses, and one, 63, with a hate crime, Police Scotland reported. With tensions rising with Israel’s escalating assault on Gaza, campaigners have pledged that mass disobedience will continue until the ban is lifted.
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