LONDON – On Saturday, police detained several individuals from the numerous demonstrators assembled outside the UK Parliament in response to a ban on Palestine Action, labeled as a terrorist entity by the authorities.
Defend Our Juries, the organization behind the demonstration, reported that 1,500 participants attended, displaying placards declaring “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
Within minutes, police began arresting the demonstrators, as bystanders chanted “Shame on you” and “Met Police, pick a side, justice or genocide.”
The Metropolitan Police force emphasized on social media that showing backing for a banned group is illegal under the Terrorism Act. “When our officers observe offences, arrests will be made,” they stated.
More than 700 people were arrested at earlier protests, and 138 have been charged under the Terrorism Act.
Mike Higgins, 62, who is blind and uses a wheelchair, was arrested last month but returned to demonstrate on Saturday.
“And I’m a terrorist? That’s the joke of it,” he said. “I’ve already been arrested under the Terrorism Act and I suspect I will be today.
“Of course I’ll keep coming back. What choice do I have?”
In July, the government banned Palestine Action after members infiltrated a Royal Air Force site, damaging aircraft to protest what they termed as the UK’s support for Israel’s actions against Hamas in the Gaza Strip. The activists sprayed red paint into the engines of two aircraft and inflicted more damage using crowbars.
The group is challenging the ban in court, saying it is a peaceful protest organization.
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