Police U-turn on refusal to investigate 'historic' trans activists' death threat signs - after realising they happened at the weekend
A number of activists were pictured holding signs threatening violence towards 'TERFS' - including disturbing images of people being stabbed and hanged - while taking part in Saturday's protest in Central London.
While most held up placards fighting for trans rights, two signs spotted at the rally in Parliament Square showed an illustration of hangman alongside the words 'The only good TERF is a .... TERF'.
The term 'TERF' is used to describe people whose views on gender identity are seen as hostile towards transgender people.
Meanwhile, another sign showed an image of a man with a bloodied knife stuck in his eye, alongside the caption: 'Are you a... transphobe? Why not try a... D.I.Y. LOBOTOMY.'
The Met Police said it was reviewing footage of the protest and vowed to take action if there were signs being displayed that broke the law.
But it claimed the images and signs were from 'historic events, did not take place in London, or do not constitute a criminal offence'.
The force has since changed its stance after the Telegraph reportedly presented it with evidence that the signs were present during the protest on Saturday.
A third graphic sign read: 'Trans women are women. Trans men are men. If you don't like that, go s*** somewhere else.'
Examples on the sign of where to do that included 'on a pile of Harry Potter books' or 'on the head of another TERF'.
Protestors also targeted a number of statues in the capital. The Metropolitan Police said they were investigating the incidents as criminal damage after the statues were daubed with graffiti.
Notably, a statue of the suffragette Millicent Fawcett was defaced with a banner reading 'F** rights'.
Millicent Fawcett was a pioneer for women's rights and led the National Union of Women's Suffrage Societies (NUWSS) and advocated for women's rights through peaceful, non-violent methods, including lobbying and public speaking.
Other defaced statues included those of Jan Christian Smuts, Nelson Mandela, Sir Robert Peel, Benjamin Disraeli, Earl of Derby and Viscount Palmerston.
Parliament square is home to 12 statues of political figures including Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln and Mahatma Gandhi.
Officers are currently searching through CCTV footage from the surrounding area to find the culprits and are appealing to anyone who may have been in attendance with information, footage or pictures to come forward by calling 101 quoting 01/7396927/25.
Chief Superintendent, Stuart Bell, who led the policing operation for the protest, said: 'Criminal damage and vandalism like this has no place on the streets of London and spoils the area for locals and those visiting.
'While the police support the public's right to protest, criminality like this is senseless and unacceptable. We are pursuing this and will take action against those responsible.
'Working with the Greater London Authority (GLA) plans are underway to remove the graffiti but this requires specialist equipment and we are confident this will be done shortly.
'We are keen to speak to those who saw anything on the day and urge anyone with information, pictures or footage to come forward.'
The protest came days after the UK Supreme Court ruled that the definition of a woman is based on biological sex, meaning transgender women are no longer considered women in the eyes of the law.
The ruling means trans women with a gender recognition certificate (GRC) could potentially be excluded from single-sex spaces if 'proportionate'.
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