protests over the ban on Palestine Action ended with more than 500 arrests in central London on Saturday, as hundreds gathered in Trafalgar Square to challenge the proscription. The Metropolitan Police said the detentions were made after people showed support for a proscribed organisation. The ages of those arrested ranged from 18 to 87, and the operation unfolded as officers warned in advance that criminal offences could follow.
Mass arrests at Trafalgar Square
The demonstration, called Everyone Day by Defend Our Juries, drew large crowds to Trafalgar Square in the afternoon. Many carried signs reading “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action, ” while others held banners defending the right to protest and opposing the US and Israel. Police said the crowd was being monitored closely as officers moved in on people who were displaying support for the banned group.
By midnight, the Metropolitan Police said 523 people had been arrested. Earlier in the day, the force said it had already made 92 arrests by 2. 50pm. The protest was the first mass demonstration opposing the proscription of Palestine Action since the group’s ban was ruled unlawful by the High Court, though the ban remained in place pending appeal.
Warnings before the operation
Commander Claire Smart, who is leading policing operations in London this weekend, said those attending should be aware that showing support for a proscribed organisation is an offence under the Terrorism Act. She added that police would not hesitate to act where the law was broken. The Metropolitan Police had earlier urged people to reflect on the potential consequences of attending.
The demonstration came after the force had indicated following the High Court judgment that officers would be unlikely to make arrests. In March, however, police said they would resume arresting protesters for supporting Palestine Action. Saturday’s arrests show that the force moved ahead with that position despite the continuing legal dispute over the ban.
Immediate reactions from the square
Defend Our Juries, which organised the event, said the Met was choosing to make arrests even though the government’s ban had been ruled unlawful by the High Court, and leading lawyers had warned that arrests could be unlawful. Some demonstrators told officers they believed they were defending the right to protest. One woman, as she was being carried away, told police: “You could be on your way catching real criminals. ”
Among those arrested was Robert Del Naja, founding member of Massive Attack, who had said before the protest that he wanted to attend because he thought police “making that U-turn to arrest people again” was “ridiculous. ” He said he felt confident that, if arrested, he could stand in court and say the arrest was unlawful. A fellow demonstrator, Linda Walker, said she came because “there’s been a genocide going on for the last two-and-a-half years. ”
What the protest means now
The crowd also included people who said they were worried about the wider impact on free speech and the right to protest. Some displayed slogans about hunger strikes, weapons, and what they described as a crackdown on dissent. The Metropolitan Police response, and the size of the arrests, now put fresh attention on how the ban will be enforced while the legal process continues.
Israel has regularly denied that its actions in Gaza amounted to genocide and has said they were justified as self-defence. For now, the central question raised by these protests is whether further demonstrations will follow and whether police will continue making arrests on the same scale at the next Palestine Action protest.
