Over the weekend, multiple individuals were detained by law enforcement authorities in the United Kingdom on the grounds of expressing support for a proscribed Palestinian advocacy group. The detention took place during the third consecutive weekend of public demonstrations against the state’s decision to outlaw this group. Protesters were seen brandishing posters stating ‘I stand against annihilation, I back Palestine Action,’ and they congregated in numerous cities across the UK including London, Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Londonderry, and Truro.
The administration was pushed to criminalize Palestine Action following an incident in which campaigners unlawfully entered a base operated by the Royal Air Force at Brize Norton in Oxfordshire. This occurred on June 20 as part of an attempt to oppose the military aid the British government has offered to Israel for its conflict with Hamas. During the breach, the protesters demonstrated their disapproval by vandalizing two massive tankers with red paint and crowbars, causing extensive damage to their jet engines.
In the wake of these events, lawmakers have passed a new regulation declaring Palestine Action to be a terror outfit. With this new status, anyone found to have membership in the group, or shown to express support for its modes of operation, could face a jail term extending for as long as 14 years. With an escalating situation, police forces have indicated a ramped-up presence in London.
In the face of escalating tension, law enforcement agencies clarified their position. They stated that they acknowledged and would protect the citizens’ rights to peaceful protest. However, they warned that any form of legal transgression from demonstrators would be promptly addressed.
Meanwhile, supporters of Palestine Action are not sitting idle and are legally contesting the governmental ban on their organization. A hearing is set at the High Court in London where the case is due to be considered on Monday. The campaign group ‘Defend Our Juries’ was responsible for arranging the Saturday demonstrations.
Over the course of Saturday, law enforcement took into custody nearly a hundred individuals across the nation. Among this number, 55 were apprehended in London alone. In London, law enforcement established a containment area around the demonstrators who had converged near the statue of Mahatma Gandhi, located in the vicinity of the Houses of Parliament.
Officers at the site seized protesters’ posters and conducted bag checks on those taken into custody. A particular instance garnered attention online when a video captured an elderly man being led away by authorities during the demonstration in Truro, a city in Cornwall. In a spirit of defiance, this individual was heard shouting, ‘I stand against genocide.’