At least 365 people have been arrested at a demonstration in London’s Parliament Square after simultaneously unveiling handwritten signs supporting the proscribed group Palestine Action, in what appears to be one of the largest mass arrests in recent British history. The protest, organised by campaign group Defend Our Juries, saw hundreds of demonstrators seated on the ground holding identical placards reading “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
Metropolitan Police officers systematically moved through the crowd, speaking to protesters before leading them away one by one as fellow demonstrators shouted “shame on you” at arresting officers. The arrests continued throughout Saturday afternoon, with police confirming that anyone displaying support for Palestine Action was “either arrested or is in the process of being arrested.
The government proscribed Palestine Action as a terrorist organisation in July under the Terrorism Act 2000, making membership of or support for the direct action group a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. The ban came into effect on 5 July, following a parliamentary vote and after activists allegedly damaged two RAF aircraft at Brize Norton.
We estimate there were around 500 to 600 people in Parliament Square when the protest began, but many were onlookers, media people or people not holding placards in support of Palestine Action,” the Met Police stated on social media platform X.
By 6pm BST, police confirmed they had arrested 365 people for supporting a proscribed organisation, with an additional seven arrests for other offences including five for assaults on police officers, though none were seriously injured.
Those whose details could be confirmed during processing were bailed with conditions not to attend any further protest in support of Palestine Action. Protesters who refused to provide their details or whose identities could not be verified were taken into custody.
The mass demonstration comes just days after three people became the first to be charged with supporting the group in England and Wales. Two women and a man are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on 16 September.
Defend Our Juries claimed more than 1,000 “sign-holders” attended the protest and that a large number had not been arrested. The Met Police disputed this, stating: “That claim simply isn’t true.
“The turnout shows how repulsed and ashamed people are about our government’s ongoing complicity in a livestreamed genocide,” a spokesperson for Defend Our Juries said.
The organisation added that “Palestine Action and people holding cardboard signs present no danger to the public at large.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper decided to proscribe Palestine Action following an incident on 20 June when activists broke into RAF Brize Norton, Britain’s largest airbase in Oxfordshire. The protesters sprayed red paint into the engines of two Voyager aircraft and damaged them with crowbars, causing an estimated £7 million in damage.
The disgraceful attack on Brize Norton in the early hours of the morning on Friday 20 June is the latest in a long history of unacceptable criminal damage committed by Palestine Action,” Cooper told Parliament in announcing the proscription.
The Home Office spokesperson defended the ban, stating: “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,” they added.
Palestine Action, founded in 2020 by activists Huda Ammori and Richard Barnard, describes itself as “committed to ending global participation in Israel’s genocidal and apartheid regime.” The group has targeted facilities linked to Israeli arms manufacturer Elbit Systems and other defence contractors.
MPs voted 385 to 26 to proscribe the group alongside two other organisations – the Maniacs Murder Cult and the Russian Imperial Movement – as terrorist organisations. The order was accepted by the House of Lords and Palestine Action has been proscribed since 5 July.
Human rights organisations have criticised the unprecedented move. Amnesty International UK’s chief executive Sacha Deshmukh called it “an unlawful interference with the fundamental rights of freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly.”
The UK has an overly broad definition of terrorism and proscribing a direct-action protest group like Palestine Action risks an unlawful interference with the fundamental rights,” Deshmukh stated.
The UN Special Rapporteur on human rights and counter-terrorism also expressed concerns, noting that “acts intending to damage property, but are not intended to kill or injure people” should not be labelled as terrorism, warning the move could have a “chilling effect” on political protest.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan had warned before the demonstration: “The Met is very experienced at dealing with large-scale protests, including where the protest activity crosses into criminality, requiring arrests.
“While we will not go into the specific details of our plan, the public can be assured that we will have the resources and processes in place to respond to any eventuality,” he said.
Saturday’s arrests add to more than 200 people detained across the country for similar reasons since the ban was implemented last month. The Metropolitan Police drew officers from other forces to form what they described as a “significant policing presence” in the capital.
Two additional marches were scheduled for the weekend – one organised by Palestine Coalition and another by pro-Israeli group Stop the Hate – adding to the security challenges facing police.
Freedom to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy and we protect it fiercely,” the Home Office spokesperson maintained, arguing the ban narrowly targets a group involved in “serious criminality.
At the end of July, the High Court ruled that Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori would be able to challenge the proscription. Her lawyers have argued that the ban breaches the right to free speech and acts as a gag on legitimate protest.
The government maintains the ban is justified, citing “strong security advice” following what it called “serious attacks the group had committed, involving violence, significant injuries and extensive criminal damage.
Saturday’s mass arrests represent a significant escalation in the enforcement of the proscription order and highlight the tensions between security concerns and civil liberties in contemporary Britain.
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