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The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘I'm an ex-army officer whose family fled the Nazis. This is why the Palestine Action ban should be overturned'
King Charles Street, in central London, is a road Colonel Chris Romberg knows well. It was his postal address during his final posting in the military, a link to home while he was overseas. Last week, the address became significant in Col Romberg's life once again after he was arrested for the first time in his life and taken to a processing station – set up by the Metropolitan Police – on that same street. Hundreds of protesters, many of whom – like 75-year-old Col Romberg – were retired, had silently held up placards in Parliament Square, Westminster to protest genocide and express support for the group Palestine Action. Due to the home secretary 's proscription of Palestine Action under terror laws, expressing support for them on a t-shirt or on a sign is now a criminal offence. As a result, 522 arrests were made by the Met Police – some 112 of them were over 70-year-olds. A former defence attache at the UK embassies in Jordan and Egypt, Col Romberg waited around five hours before he was arrested, and then a further three to be processed by officers and released on street bail. He had been involved in campaigning for the Palestinian cause for some years, feeling motivated by the oppression he saw during his time in the Middle East. His father, aunts and grandparents, who were Christians of Jewish descent, fled Nazi-controlled Austria in 1938, he explained. This history, he said, has also driven him to oppose what is happening in Gaza, and what he described as Western governments' complicity in the unfolding humanitarian crisis. Speaking about his decision to take part in last weekend's protest, he said: 'I did think about it and I did discuss it with family because it's not an easy decision to make. Although it wasn't certain we would be arrested, there was a high likelihood we would be. 'It was my first time being arrested. But all our freedoms and all the best movements that there have been in democratic and non-democratic history have been achieved by people taking risks, and people taking action. My motivation is to defend of freedom of speech and expression, and also to prevent a genocide - which we have a moral and legal duty to do.' He added: 'For a lot of people there, I believe it was the first time they have been arrested, and the first time they have taken action in that form. The implications are serious because we are being arrested under a very serious piece of legislation - the terrorism act. For many people, especially younger people, that can have serious implications for their lives. For those that are older like me, then those long-term consequences may not be quite the same but nevertheless they are serious.' His family's history has connected him to descendants of Holocaust survivors who are part of the pro-Palestine protest movement. He explained: 'In my case, my father and his parents and sisters survived because they fled. They fled Austria in 1938 after the German takeover. 'Because of our family connections, we are horrified that a genocide should again be taking place. And for many this brings back horrible memories from what they heard from their own parents and grandparents, and therefore we are determined to oppose it'. Labour peer and former shadow attorney general Shami Chakrabarti has warned that the ban is at risk of becoming an 'I am Spartacus' moment, urging the government to 'think again'. Former Labour minister Peter Hain has described the mass arrests as 'madness', saying Palestine Action was not 'equivalent to real terrorist groups like al-Qaeda or Islamic State'. Co-founder of Palestine Action Huda Ammori has been granted permission by the High Court to challenge the group's ban in the courts – the first case where such a legal battle has been allowed to go ahead. Defend Our Juries, who co-ordinated last Saturday's protest, have pledged that they will demonstrate again in September if 1,000 people agree to take part. With the demonstrators taking to the streets in protest genocide and to stand up for civil liberties, home secretary Yvette Cooper has sought to emphasise the dangers of Palestine Action. In a statement released after the weekend's arrests, she said: 'Palestine Action was proscribed based on strong security advice following serious attacks the group has committed, involving violence, significant injuries and extensive criminal people may not yet know the reality of this organisation, but the assessments are very clear - this is not a non-violent organisation'. Ms Ammori said that the proscription of the group was 'solely based on property damage, and any insinuation that it is based on other things is categorically untrue or unavailable to the rest of us to be able to rebut'.
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Mark Hamill reveals he planned to leave the US when Donald Trump was re-elected
Get the latest entertainment news, reviews and star-studded interviews with our Independent Culture email Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Get the latest entertainment news with our free Culture newsletter Email * SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our Privacy notice Star Wars actor Mark Hamill has revealed he planned to leave the United States when Donald Trump was re-elected as president in 2024. The 73-year-old, known for his role as Luke Skywalker in the iconic sci-fi franchise, gave his wife Marilou Tork – whom he married in 1978 – the choice between relocating to 'London or Ireland'. Hamill's wife, who worked as a dental hygienist and met Hamill while cleaning his teeth, ingeniously convinced her husband not to move countries by suggesting Trump was pushing them out of the US. 'She's very clever. She didn't respond right away but a week later she said, 'I'm surprised you would allow him to force you out of your own country,'' Hamill, a lifelong Democrat, told The Times. ''That son of a b****', I thought. I'm not leaving.' When asked about the political landscape in the United States, Hamill expressed exasperation over 'the bullying, the incompetence, the people in place' in the Trump administration. The actor added that the only way he could 'deal' with the his country's politics without becoming suicidal was to look at the situation 'like a thick, sprawling political novel' instead of reality. open image in gallery Actor Mark Hamill has revealed he planned to leave the United States after Donald Trump was re-elected in 2024 ( Getty ) Despite his horror, Hamill added that he 'still believes' there are 'more honest, decent people' in the country than there are those in a Maga crowd. 'If I didn't, I'd move back to England,' he said. Elsewhere in the interview, Hamill revealed his dislike of US gun culture is such that he almost didn't accept his role in a forthcoming adaptation of Stephen King's horror novel The Long Walk. Hamill will play The Major, a man who runs an annual walking contest in a dystopian version of America that sees 100 young men walk continuously at a pace of four miles an hour – or they'll be shot to death. 'Francis Lawrence, the director, understood what was troubling me,' he said of his initial reluctance to take on the role. open image in gallery Hamill as The Major in 'The Long Walk' ( Lionsgate/YouTube ) 'American society is gun violence and it's hard to get past that, but as I spoke to him I realised this is just the guy. He said he would have been surprised if I wasn't troubled by it.' The actor went on to compare the film to recent ICE [Immigration and Customs Enforcement] arrests in the country, saying agents wearing masks, with no identification, had been 'pulling people out of their cars'. 'They were just brutalising people, kneeling on their necks,' he said. 'When I made the movie I wasn't thinking in terms of it being timely but it's proven to be just that.' Hamill led the three original Star Wars movies – Star Wars (1977), The Empire Strikes Back (1980), and Return of the Jedi (1983) – as Luke Skywalker alongside Carrie Fisher as Princess Leira and Harrison Ford as Han Solo. He reprised the role in all three films of the sequel trilogy: The Force Awakens (2015), The Last Jedi (2017), and The Rise of Skywalker (2019), as well as in numerous TV spin offs, including The Clone Wars and The Mandalorian.
The Independent
17 minutes ago
- The Independent
Palestine Action ‘more than a regular protest group', says home secretary as 60 more face charges
Home secretary Yvette Cooper has labelled Palestine Action more than 'a regular protest group' as she defended the group's proscription as a terrorist organisation. She said protest and free speech remain 'an important part of our democracy' which will 'always be protected', but argued Palestine Action has carried out 'an escalating campaign'. Writing in The Observer, she said: 'Some may think it is a regular protest group known for occasional stunts. But that is not the extent of its past activities.' Ms Cooper said counterterrorism intelligence showed the organisation passed the tests to be proscribed under the 2000 Terrorism Act with 'disturbing information' about future attacks. 'Protecting public safety and national security are at the very heart of the job I do,' she said. 'Were there to be further serious attacks or injuries, the government would rightly be condemned for not acting sooner to keep people safe.' She said only a tiny minority of people who had protested in support of Palestinian people since the start of the war with Israel had been arrested. 'That is why the proscription of this group is not about protest or the Palestinian cause,' she said. 'In a democracy, lawful protest is a fundamental right but violent criminality is not. The Metropolitan Police said on Friday more than 700 people have been arrested since the group was banned on July 5. The force said a further 60 people will be prosecuted for support of Palestine Action, while Norfolk Police said on Saturday 13 people were arrested at a protest in Norwich. Last week, the Met confirmed the first three charges in England and Wales for offences under the Terrorism Act relating to Palestine Action. The three people charged were arrested at a protest in Parliament Square on July 5. More prosecutions are expected in the coming weeks, and arrangements have been put in place 'that will enable us to investigate and prosecute significant numbers each week if necessary', the Met said.
