Dozens to be prosecuted for supporting terror group Palestine Action after hundreds were arrested in protests

Scottish Sun

2 days ago

The group was proscribed last month meaning it is a criminal offence to show support
TERROR PROSECUTIONS Dozens to be prosecuted for supporting terror group Palestine Action after hundreds were arrested in protests
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COPS have charged a further 60 people for supporting Palestine Action after more than 700 arrests.
The group was proscribed last month after they took credit for vandalising two aircraft at RAF Brize Norton, in an alleged £7million attack.
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Police detained 522 people who were illegally supporting Palestine Action on Saturday
Credit: Getty
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Dozens could be prosecuted for backing the terror group
Credit: Peter Macdiarmid
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Organisers Defend Our Juries said up to 700 people were at the event in Parliament Square
Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
Palestine Action have also been linked to claims of serious assault on staff and police officers at a business in South Gloucestershire.
Since proscription, it is a criminal offence to show support for the group - carrying a prison sentence of up to 14 years.
This comes after more than 15,000 people held a peaceful protest in London last weekend to support Palestine, where only one person was arrested.
But cops later detained 522 people who were illegally supporting Palestine Action.
Five others were arrested for assaulting police officers, two for breaching public order conditions and one for racially aggravated public order.
Organisers Defend Our Juries said up to 700 people were at the event in Parliament Square, with police preparing for the "largest mass arrest in their history".
It turned out to be an even higher number of arrests made by the Metropolitan Police at a single protest than the poll tax riots of 1990, when 339 people were arrested.
Clusters of officers could be seen holding people sat on the edge of the grass and escorting them through crowds to police vans.
One man, who appeared to be in his 50s, was arrested after he entered a large group of police holding a homemade sign reading "I support Palestine Action".
He was marched away by a group of nine cops.
Record number arrested at Palestine Action protest as demonstrators bring chaos to London
People waving Palestinian flags and signs reading "stop the genocide" continued to gather in the main square despite the risk of arrest.
Another pair of protesters holding handwritten pro-Palestine Action banners sat on the statue of Millicent Garrett Fawcett.
They were later arrested and carried away by police officers. As they were carried away the crowd shouted "shame on you".
Three retired doctors in scrubs lay and sat holding signs in support of the controversial group - police surrounded them and arrested a woman, carrying her away through the crowd.
Another was later carried away, with officers having to fight through an angry crowd.
The mass protest came only days after the first three people to be charged with supporting the group were publicly named as Jeremy Shippam, 71, Judit Murray, also 71, and Fiona Maclean, 53.
Stephen Parkinson, Director of Public Prosecutions, said: 'The decisions that we have announced today are the first significant numbers to come out of the recent protests, and many more can be expected in the next few weeks. We are ready to make swift decisions in all cases where arrests have been made.
'The public has a democratic right to protest peacefully in this country, and I understand the depth of feeling around the horrific scenes in Gaza.
'However, Palestine Action is now a proscribed terrorist organisation and those who have chosen to break the law will be subject to criminal proceedings under the Terrorism Act.
'When protest conduct crosses the line from lawful activity into criminality, we have a duty to enforce the law.
'People should be clear about the real-life consequences for anyone choosing to support Palestine Action. A terrorism conviction can severely impact your life and career – it can restrict your ability to travel overseas and work in certain professions.
'I urge people to think very carefully about their actions at protests. Anyone who chooses to disobey the law will have to face the consequences.'
Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley added: 'I am proud of how our police and CPS teams have worked so speedily together to overcome misguided attempts to overwhelm the justice system. If necessary, we are able to investigate and quickly charge significant numbers of people each week if people want the potentially life-changing consequences of a terrorist conviction.
'At the same time, we will continue to police the numerous protests each week where people express their views in support of Palestine without choosing to break Counter Terrorism Laws by supporting proscribed terror groups.
'To be clear, these arrests and prosecutions do not outlaw people's right to demonstrate in support of Palestine, or any other cause. They are simply the enforcement of a specific provision under the Terrorism Act in relation to a specific proscribed terrorist organisation, Palestine Action.
'Where officers see these offences, we will continue to make arrests and, as shown today, the CPS and police will work to quickly secure charges, at whatever scale is necessary.'
A Home Office spokesperson said in a previous statement: "The Home Secretary has been clear that the proscription of Palestine Action is not about Palestine, nor does it affect the freedom to protest on Palestinian rights.
"It only applies to the specific and narrow organisation whose activities do not reflect or represent the thousands of people across the country who continue to exercise their fundamental rights to protest on different issues."
Consequences of Terrorism Act offences
Source; Met Police
•A maximum sentence of six months' imprisonment.
•The Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) will have a record of a person's TACT conviction, and this will be seen by employers who use DBS to carry out checks on staff or new applicants. The existence of a TACT conviction may be seen by employers as grounds for a refusal to employ a person or to dismiss them.
•Universities also carry out DBS checks, and may refuse entry to courses to those with terrorism convictions.
•Any application to visit another country usually requires a declaration of criminal convictions. A TACT conviction will be a potential bar to entry to countries including the US, Australia, Japan, and from 2026 when the ETIAS system is introduced, countries of the European Union.
•If a person is a member of a professional body, they may face disciplinary proceedings and potentially removal from the profession.
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The mass protest came days after the first three people to be charged with supporting the group were publicly named
Credit: Shutterstock Editorial
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Five others were arrested for assaulting police officers
Credit: AFP