Last month, the British government banned the group Palestine Action and warned that anyone who continued to show support for it would ‘feel the full force of the law’. At a peaceful protest this weekend, 500 people were arrested, of which more than half were aged sixty or over.
On Saturday, The London Metropolitan Police arrested 532 people at a Palestine Action protest in Central London.
It said the majority of arrests were made for displaying placards in support of the organisation at Parliament Square, as well as one at a Palestine Coalition march. Many of the signs read ‘I oppose genocide’ and ‘I support Palestine Action’.
An updated report released on Sunday stated that 259 people arrested were above age 60, with nearly 100 of the individuals detained aged in their 70s. A further fifteen were in their 80s. The number of arrests was the largest made by the force on a single day in the last 10 years.
Government officials are divided on the response to Palestine Action. Former Labour cabinet minister Peter Hain described the arrests as ‘madness,’ stating that Palestine Action is not equivalent to ‘real terrorist groups,’ while MP Dianne Abbott said the government is dangerously close to appearing ‘both draconian and foolish’ for arresting elderly protestors.
However, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper has defended the Palestine Action arrests over the weekend and said it is ‘important that no one’s in any doubt that it is not a non-violent organisation’.
In July, the UK’s home secretary proscribed Palestine Action under the Terrorism Act. The move came after activists broke into the RAF Brize Norton military base in Oxfordshire and spray painted two military Voyager planes red.
Palestine Action claimed responsibility for the incident, which it said was a protest against the UK’s sale of weapons and surveillance for Israel. Police said the paint caused an estimated £7 million in damage to the military planes.
Though members of Palestine Action describe themselves as ‘disruptive but peaceful,’ British ministers have insisted that they are part of a ‘terrorist organisation’ that ‘violently carried out criminal damage to RAF aircraft’.
Following the ban on the group, police warned that anyone publicly supporting the group would be arrested and government ministers said supporters would ‘feel the full force of the law’.
That said, security expert Lizzie Dearden explained to the BBC that laws the protesters were arrested under aren’t designed to deal with a group the size or nature of Palestine Action.
They were designed to deal with ‘the IRA, al-Qaeda, and armed militant groups… and so the law is being applied in a completely new way.’
A photo of the £7 million in damages. (Credit: BBC)
The reaction from Palestine Action supporters
Amongst those arrested was 75-year-old Chris Romberg, a former British army officer colonel and military attache at UK embassies in Egypt and Jordan, and the son of a Holocaust survivor.
Speaking to The Guardian Rombeg said, ‘This is a serious assault on our freedoms. When I protested against the US war in Vietnam, we were able to chant “victory to the NLF” without being criminalised. Now a statement of support for a non-violent direct action group is prosecuted under anti-terrorism legislation.’
Also arrested was 58-year-old Alice Oswald, an award winning poet, who said that many police officers appeared to be struggling with their duty. ‘You could see the slightly shifty look in their faces,’ she explained.
Many supporters of Palestine Action believe the arrests symbolize a loss of democratic civil liberties in the UK, with members of the public saying ‘the government has lost all credibility’ and labelling Prime Minister Kier Starmer ‘an awful coward’.
Sacha Deshmukh, chief executive of Amnesty International stated, ‘People are understandably outraged by the ongoing genocide being committed in Gaza and are entitled under international human rights law to express their horror.’
British police have arrested hundreds of protestors for holding up signs saying “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”
But they have arrested zero — zero — dual nationals who have participated in the actual genocide. pic.twitter.com/kR8x6GMpVW
Although many argue that criminal damage to RAF bases and aircraft should be prosecuted, many say in the same breath that it is wrong to assume every person supporting Palestine Action is guilty by association.
Baroness Shami Chakrabarti told The Independent: ‘The proscription of Palestine Action is in danger of becoming a mistake of poll tax proportions.’
‘The courts have already found an arguable case that it breaches fundamental rights, and more – not less – people are coming out to protest against both atrocities in Gaza and inappropriate use of terror laws at home’ Chakrabarti continued. ‘The notable presence of so many older people highlights the strength of genuine feeling.’
The Met has said it will spend the coming weeks putting together case files and securing charges against those arrested, most of whom have been released already.
The High Court ruled that Palestine Action would be able to challenge its proscription as a terrorist organization, a move that is expected in the months to come.
Deputy Editor & Content Partnership ManagerLondon, UK
I’m Jessica (She/Her). I’m the Deputy Editor & Content Partnership Manager at Thred. Originally from the island of Bermuda, I specialise in writing about ocean health and marine conservation, but you can also find me delving into pop culture, health and wellness, plus sustainability in the beauty and fashion industries. Follow me on Twitter, LinkedIn and drop me some ideas/feedback via email.
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