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Over 40 arrested as UK police crack down on Pro-Palestine protesters in London
Protesters gather in support of the pro-palestinian group "Palestine Action", in Parliament Square, London. AFP
Police in London detained dozens of protestors for supporting Palestine Action for the second time, a week after the UK government banned the activist organisation under anti-terrorism legislation on Saturday.
'Officers have made 41 arrests for showing support for a proscribed organisation,' the Metropolitan Police said on X, noting another person had been arrested for common assault.
'The area was cleared within the last hour,' it added in a mid-afternoon update.
Police were seen on camera closing in on a small number of demonstrators who had assembled at midday on the steps of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament Square, holding placards in favour of Palestine Action.
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Defend Our Juries, a campaign group that had announced plans to organise protests in numerous UK locations on Saturday 'to defy' the prohibition, condemned the response.
'The Metropolitan Police were out in force again today, arresting more than 40 people in Parliament Square for holding signs opposed to genocide and supporting Palestine Action,' a spokesperson told AFP.
'Who do the police think they are serving in this?' the spokesperson added, calling the ban 'Orwellian'.
It comes a week after the arrest of 29 people, including a priest and a number of health professionals, for offences under anti-terrorism laws.
Police have warned since the Palestine Action ban kicked in on July 5 that expressing support for it was now a crime.
'It is a criminal offence to invite or express support for a proscribed organisation,' the Met said on X ahead of Saturday's planned protests.
'As we saw last week, those who do breach the law will face action.'
Palestine Action's proscription cleared parliament in the first days of July, and a last-ditch High Court challenge failed to stop it becoming law.
The government announced plans for the ban under the Terrorism Act 2000 days after the group's activists claimed to be behind a break-in at an air force base in southern England.
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Two aircraft there were sprayed with red paint, causing an estimated £7 million ($9.55 million) in damage.
Four people charged in relation to the incident remain in custody.
Palestine Action has condemned the proscription – which makes it a criminal offence to belong to or support the group, punishable by up to 14 years in prison – as an attack on free speech.
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