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Times
2 days ago
- Politics
- Times
Hundreds arrested over Palestine Action warned of 14-year jail terms
Hundreds of protesters arrested over support of Palestine Action have been threatened with 14 years in jail, as the victims minister promised they would feel 'the full force of the law'. Alex Davies-Jones said that ministers had evidence that the group, which is banned under anti-terror laws, had 'targeted Jewish-owned businesses' and had links to 'hostile state actors' based on secret evidence. 'There is a limit of up to 14 years in prison if you support a proscribed terrorist organisation here,' she told Sky News. 'If you are showing support for a terrorist organisation, you will feel the full force of the law.' • Israel-Gaza live: follow the latest coverage She told protesters backing the organisation's campaign against starvation in Gaza to 'think again', warning them that their actions 'aren't necessarily what they seem'. On Sunday, the Metropolitan Police said it faced 'entirely unrealistic' challenges in policing a protest in support of the group, at which more than 500 people were arrested. Activists who were detained on suspicion of terror offences were later bailed on the spot, leaving overwhelmed officers unable to stop them from returning to the protest. Palestine Action said the protest was a 'momentous act of collective defiance' as police were forced to arrest 532 people, including 15 over 80 years old and 112 over 70, on suspicion of showing support for a proscribed organisation. Under the law, support for the group can lead to a prison sentence, although most of those arrested are expected to be fined. To prevent police stations being overwhelmed with arrested protesters, the Met implemented a 'street bail' system, which has previously been used at large environmental protests. The force used two 'prisoner processing points' in Westminster to deal with 320 protesters, who were asked to confirm their details before being released and ordered to appear at a police station at a future date. Protesters were given conditions not to attend demonstrations related to Palestine Action, although video online suggested some of those who were released on bail then returned to Parliament Square. The police said it would have been impractical to try to re-arrest those who returned to the area. 'Given the numbers of people arrested yesterday it would have been entirely unrealistic for officers to recognise individuals who returned,' they said. 'Their focus was rightly on those continuing to commit offences who were still to be arrested. We are as confident as we can be that none of those who returned to Parliament Square rejoined the protesters who were holding placards.' Palestine Action said that its goal was to overwhelm the police. Huda Ammori, who co-founded the group, said the number of arrests was a 'farcical waste of police resources'. She said: 'This will go down in our country's history as a momentous act of collective defiance of an unprecedented attack on our fundamental freedoms, taken straight from the playbook of authoritarian regimes which abuse counter-terrorism laws to curb rights to free expression and protest.' Defend Our Juries, a civil liberty group which organised the protest on Saturday, said it was planning to hold further demonstrations — in support of free speech rather than Palestine Action specifically — in early September. • A history of Palestine Action: from birth to ban Tim Crosland, a co-founder of Defend Our Juries, said: 'Already we're hearing from hundreds of people wanting to take part in the next one, so expecting it to be even bigger. 'People are now seeing an arrest for terrorism as a badge of honour for resistance to genocide.' Among those arrested at Saturday's protest were 212 who refused to provide their details or were found to have broken previous bail conditions, and were transported to police stations in the capital. At least 18 remained in custody over night. Downing Street said that it would expect charges to be brought against anyone breaking the law. The decision is likely to be taken by Lord Hermer, the attorney-general, who decides on prosecutions in terrorism cases. However, most are expected to be dealt with via fines in the magistrates courts. Yvette Cooper, the home secretary, said that while the right to protest was 'fiercely' protected this was 'very different from displaying support for this one specific and narrow proscribed organisation'. 'Palestine Action was proscribed based on strong security advice following serious attacks the group has committed, involving violence, significant injuries and extensive criminal damage,' she said. 'Many people may not yet know the reality of this organisation, but the assessments are very clear — this is not a non-violent organisation. UK national security and public safety must always be our top priority.' Among those detained were Sir Jonathon Porritt, a former government adviser when Sir Tony Blair and Gordon Brown were in office, who said it was a 'privilege' to be arrested. Most of the arrests — 522 — were made for displaying an item in support of a proscribed organisation contrary to section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000. Hundreds of protesters had held up handwritten placards bearing the slogan: 'I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.' The number of arrests exceeds the total for all terrorism-related activity last year, recorded by the Home Office as 248. Anne Alexander, 50, a university researcher from London, was arrested at 1.50pm and held for nearly three hours at a processing point near Great Scotland Yard. She described police officers filling out paperwork at tables in marquees. 'They had people out in the street for hours, hundreds of them in a queue, having been arrested,' she said. 'If they were able to make an ID check to confirm name and home address, they were then bailing people to return to a police station in, in my case, October.' Alexander described the processing point as like 'a factory assembly line' but said that the process was 'quite chaotic'. She claimed the officer arresting her had been confused about whether he was arresting her under the Public Order Act or Terrorism Act, at one point using an AI summary on his phone to show her the difference between two sections of the latter. Polly Smith, 74, a retired care worker from Ipswich, was arrested within four minutes of the protest. 'I was sitting just in front of the Gandhi statue in Parliament Square,' she said. '[My sign] said 'I oppose genocide. I support Palestine action'.' Smith was originally taken to a processing point but was then moved to Kentish Town police station until about 9pm, nearly eight hours after her arrest. Organisers of the weekend demonstration claimed that Saturday was the 'largest mass arrest' on one day in the Met's history, exceeding the 339 arrested for protesting against the poll tax on March 31, 1990. The Met was not able to confirm the historical arrest figures but said that a recent record was the 306 arrested on October 7, 2019, at an Extinction Rebellion protest. On Armistice Day in 2023 the force arrested 145 people, the vast majority of whom were counter-protesters confronting a pro-Palestinian demonstration calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. In April 2021, 107 people were arrested at a Kill the Bill protest against the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Bill. Nationwide, there have been many protests which have spread over multiple days and resulted in mass arrests. In 1982, 752 anti-nuclear protesters were arrested over four days at USAF Upper Heyford in Oxfordshire.
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Keir Starmer warns Palestine Action have 'targeted Jewish businesses' as PM defends banning terror group
Sir Keir Starmer warned that Palestine Action were targeting Jewish-owned businesses as he defended banning the group, it has been revealed. The Prime Minister is said to have told a meeting of Labour 's National Executive Committee that proscribing the group was not intended to stifle debate on Gaza. But he outlined a 'history of break-ins, sabotage and targeting Jewish-owned businesses' and said all groups are 'held to the same standard', according to a report. Sir Keir moved to ban Palestine Action after two Voyager aircraft were damaged at RAF Brize Norton in June - an incident the group said it was behind. It means that membership of, or support for, the now-proscribed group is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison, under the Terrorism Act 2000. The Government's action has been criticised by some as an attack on free speech and the right to protest. Organisers have said more than 500 people are willing to risk arrest by taking part in a demonstration in support of the terror group in central London on Saturday. Ann Black, a member of Labour's NEC, said she shared concerns about Palestine Action's proscription during a meeting of the party's ruling body last month. In her account of the meeting, published on the LabourList website, she wrote: 'I passed on concerns about proscribing Palestine Action. 'Many members see their actions as comparable to the Greenham Common women who broke into RAF bases, criminal property damage but not on a par with Al-Qaeda. 'Or Patriotic Alternative who, according to Hope Not Hate, support political violence and Holocaust denial, or the mobs attacking asylum-seekers, security guards and police. 'Keir said that all organisations are held to the same standard, and Palestine Action has a history of break-ins, sabotage and targeting Jewish-owned businesses. '(The latter would indeed be disturbing but is not mentioned on the government website.) 'He assured us that the ban is not intended to stifle debate on Palestine. 'Though it is clogging up courts and police stations with pensioners for holding placards and Private Eye cartoons.' A source also told The Times of Sir Keir's comments to the NEC: 'He said, 'It's not just the RAF bases, they've planned and attacked Jewish-owned businesses'. 'He said there were some incidents that were well known, and others that were not.' Cabinet minister Lisa Nandy yesterday warned Brits to 'stay away' from the planned Palestine Action protest this weekend. Speaking to Times Radio, Ms Nandy was asked if those who attend Saturday's demonstration will be arrested and charged with terror offences. The Culture Secretary stressed this would be 'an operational matter for the police', adding: 'It wouldn't be right for us to say, to try and dictate to them how they police any march. 'But what I would say is, I think some of the reporting around this is conflating legitimate protests. 'Just last week I was coming out of Parliament, there were lots of pro-Palestinian protesters there, peacefully demonstrating. 'At the heart of power, that's absolutely right and proper and important for them to do... I commend them for that. 'There's a difference between that and supporting a proscribed terror organisation that wishes harm on the British people. 'And I would just urge people to stay away from those sorts of events and to exercise their democratic rights in a peaceful and legitimate way.' Organisers said those taking part in Saturday's protest will hold 'I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action' signs as part of a campaign to end the group's proscription. Defend Our Juries added that the protest would go ahead as planned after the 'conditional commitment requirement' was reached. They denied that the planned mass protest will try to overwhelm the police and justice system. More than 200 people were arrested at a wave of protests across the UK in response to the proscription last month as part of the campaign co-ordinated by Defend Our Juries. Many of the protesters were detained after writing and holding up the message 'I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action' on placards or pieces of cardboard. A Met Police spokesperson said: 'We are aware that the organisers of Saturday's planned protest are encouraging hundreds of people turn out with the intention of placing a strain on the police and the wider criminal justice system. 'The Met is very experienced in dealing with large-scale protests, including where the protest activity crosses into criminality requiring arrests. 'While we will not go into the specific details of our plan, the public can be assured that we will have the resources and processes in place to respond to any eventuality. 'Our officers will continue to apply the law in relation to Palestine Action as we have done since its proscription. 'Anyone showing support for the group can expect to be arrested.'
Telegraph
6 days ago
- Politics
- Telegraph
Starmer accuses Palestine Action of targeting Jewish-owned businesses
Palestine Action has targeted Jewish-owned businesses, Sir Keir Starmer has claimed. The Prime Minister made the comments at a meeting of Labour's national executive committee (NEC), saying that the now banned protest group had a history of 'targeting Jewish-owned businesses'. The comments were first reported by Ann Black, an NEC member, who said she had passed on concerns about the Government decision to proscribe Palestine Action to the Prime Minister. She added that Sir Keir insisted that the ban on the group was 'not intended to stifle debate on Palestine'. This weekend, a large-scale protest is expected to take place in London in support of Palestine Action, with police warning that anyone 'showing support' for the group faced arrest. A source told The Times that Sir Keir said at the NEC meeting: 'It's not just the RAF bases, they've planned and attacked Jewish-owned businesses.' He reportedly went on to say there were 'some incidents that were well known, and others that were not'. Earlier this week, an activist allegedly associated with Palestine Action was remanded in custody accused of vandalising two aircraft at RAF Brize Norton. It is estimated that the full cost of repairing the two planes will be around £7m. A spokesman for the Prime Minister said: 'Those who seek to support this group may not yet know the true nature of this organisation. 'But people should be under no illusion, this is not a peaceful or non-violent protest group, and we're also clear that their activities do not reflect or represent the thousands of people across this country who continue to exercise their fundamental right to protest on different issues.' Some backbench Labour MPs openly spoke out against the Government's decision to proscribe the group under antiterrorism laws when the Home Secretary announced the move in July. Clive Lewis said that in Britain there had been a 'long history… of direct action which pushes the boundaries of our democracy'. Richard Burgon said that the move risked 'criminalising thousands of volunteers and supporters'. The Prime Minister has also been forced to defend his announcement last week of a plan to recognise a Palestinian state in September, unless Israel meets certain conditions.
Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Times
Palestine Action ‘targeted Jewish-owned businesses', Keir Starmer says
The government has evidence that Palestine Action targeted Jewish-owned businesses, Sir Keir Starmer has said as he defended the government's ban on the activist group. The prime minister told Labour's ruling national executive committee that the group had a history of break-ins, sabotage and other serious crimes. He insisted that the ban was not designed to stifle debate about the wider crisis in Gaza, which he said left people with a 'sense of revulsion'. Ministers are bracing themselves for a large-scale demonstration in London on Saturday in support of Palestine Action, which was proscribed as a terrorist organisation last month. Police have warned that anyone 'showing support for the group can expect to be arrested'. The home secretary moved to ban the organisation after activists caused an estimated £7 million of damage to jets at RAF Brize Norton in June. However, it has alarmed some Labour MPs who fear it will alienate Labour supporters concerned that the government is not doing enough to show its support for the Palestinian cause. Starmer told the NEC the government had evidence of significant criminality. A source told The Times: 'He said, 'It's not just the RAF bases, they've planned and attacked Jewish-owned businesses'. He said there were some incidents that were well known, and others that were not.' The account was corroborated by another NEC member, Ann Black, who wrote on the Labour List website: 'Keir said that all organisations are held to the same standard, and Palestine Action has a history of break-ins, sabotage and targeting Jewish-owned businesses.' The revelation came after Starmer was challenged over his plan to recognise the state of Palestine next month, unless conditions are met. The prime minister said Hamas was a 'terrorist organisation' that could play 'no part in any future government'. He said: 'They should release the hostages straight away and they should play absolutely no part in the governance of Palestine at any point.' Demonstrators, including some family members of British hostages still held by Hamas, are set to march on Downing Street calling for the release of the remaining hostages before any discussions on the recognition of Palestine. However, Starmer defended his plans, telling Channel 5 News: '[We all] have to do all that we can to alleviate the awful situation on the ground in Gaza. We need aid in volume and at scale.' People have seen the 'images of starvation' in Gaza, he said, adding that 'the British public can see it and there's a sense of revulsion of what they're seeing'. He said that the government had to do 'everything we can' to get aid in, working with other countries 'and it's in that context that I set out our position on recognition'. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said on Tuesday that 'Keir Starmer has made a mistake' and 'what we need to focus on now is a ceasefire and getting the hostages home'. Tzipi Hotovely, Israeli ambassador to the UK, said the actions of Hamas 'must never be rewarded'.
