Latest news with #Rotherhithe
BBC News
9 hours ago
- BBC News
London Ambulance worker says patient attack was like horror film
A pair of London ambulance workers said they felt like they were trapped in a "horror film" after a drunk patient became aggressive, kicked through their windscreen and threw bricks at them as they tried to help Jenkins said he and colleague Tom Pursey were covered in broken glass in the attack that "went on and on" after being called out to a housing estate in Rotherhithe, south-east London, last chief paramedic Pauline Cranmer said it was a "deeply disturbing and sustained attack" and said assaults like these were on the rise. The attacker, Seiitbek Uulu, admitted assaulting an emergency worker, damaging property and being drunk and disorderly in public. The London Ambulance Service (LAS) said the attack on 24 August unfolded as Uulu was being checked out by the patient left the ambulance appearing to be in distress and said he was looking for his bike, Mr Jenkins said. "My crewmate got out to help him look for it but then I heard the emergency button go off and I knew he was in trouble."The patient was chasing him and threatening him." The pair got into the front of the ambulance and tried to drive away, but as they set off, Uulu jumped on to the bonnet of the ambulance, the LAS Harvey, 25, said: "He was punching and stamping on the windscreen until he got his foot through it. We were in disbelief and got into the back of the ambulance to get away."It felt like a horror film, as it went quiet, but then suddenly he was punching the windows and throwing bricks and concrete trying to hit us. "The attack just went on and on."We didn't know whether to go out and tackle him or stay in the ambulance – we just felt trapped."Mr Harvey was hit by a brick, although he was not seriously were called and Uulu was apprehended soon afterwards, while the ambulance was taken off the road for 33, of Gibsons Hill, Southwark, was sentenced last month at Croydon Magistrates' Court and ordered to pay a fine of £114, abstain from alcohol for four months and complete 150 hours of community service. 'Disproportionately low sentence' Ms Cranmer said: "This was a deeply disturbing and sustained attack on an ambulance crew who were simply trying to help."Attacks on ambulance workers are increasing and sentences should reflect the impact crimes like this have."According to the Association of Ambulance Chief Executives (AACE), incidents of violence and abuse against ambulance workers have been on the rise in recent years, with an 11.3% increase in 2024 compared with chair Jason Killens said he believed the sentence handed to Uulu was "disproportionately low" given the "level of violence" towards the ambulance crew."This appalling behaviour has a major long-term impact on the health and wellbeing of ambulance people, but the situation appears to be getting worse, with low rates of conviction and weak sentences issued to offenders who do not see them as a serious deterrent," he said.
Sky News
4 days ago
- Politics
- Sky News
Palestine Action supporters defiant as group faces ban
"If they brand Palestine Action a terrorist group then - oh my goodness - I'm one of them too," said Eleanor, a mother from Rotherhithe, south London. "Whether I do something or not - I'm a terrorist," she said. Eleanor had come to support the group at a demonstration in Trafalgar Square. She had just heard a statement from Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, who said Palestine Action will be banned following "a nationwide campaign of direct criminal action". It means not just the core members, but anyone coming out to support them in protests such as this one would be committing an offence punishable of up to 14 years in prison. Eleanor said she started supporting the group ever after the previous home secretary Suella Braverman dubbed the pro-Palestinian protests hate marches. Eleanor added that this latest move by the government won't stop her supporting Palestine Action, but she worries what would happen to her children if she was prosecuted. There are other, legal, pro-Palestinian groups that people can support, but those at Monday's rally believe their group was the one having the biggest impact. "They are scared of us," said another protester, Frieda. "Now they will make our lives hell and I don't know how anyone in this country can stand for that." Air of defiance palpable She was carrying a banner that read "Free Political Prisoners" and said several of her friends had been arrested for activities related to Palestine Action (PA). She added: "We won't be intimidated by this, and we will come out in bigger numbers now." This air of defiance was palpable as protesters sat in the road blocking traffic around a section of Trafalgar Square chanting: "We are all Palestine Action!" 1:33 Many interpreted the home secretary's statement as a blatant move to shut them up, by a government embarrassed by last week's security breach at RAF Brize Norton where PA activists sprayed paint on two RAF planes. A placard at the demonstration read: "Oh I spilled some paint - does that make me a terrorist?" Ms Cooper made it clear that her actions were not the result of an isolated incident. In her statement, she referred to repeated criminal action "against businesses and institutions, including key national infrastructure and defence firms". She added that Palestine Action's activity had "increased in frequency and severity" since 2024 and "become more aggressive, with its members demonstrating a willingness to use violence". She made reference to an attack against the Thales defence factory in Glasgow in 2022, where she said "the group caused over a million pounds of damage, including to parts essential to submarines". In this case, several members were prosecuted. But protesters claim this makes their point. Wearing a Free Palestine T-shirt, protester Robert said: "If you don't agree with those things, there are laws that can be used - but acts of terrorism have not been committed." Another protester, Mia, said: "It would feel farcical if it wasn't so scary." Her banner read: "Yvette Cooper - if you are anti anti-genocide you are pro-genocide." 'Sinister development' No doubt there were many at the protest who simply want an end to the violence in Gaza and feel the government is complicit in its support for Israel. In that sense, it feels like a sinister development for their right to protest to be curtailed. Palestine Action has stated that its mission is to "break the tools used to commit" genocide - an allegation Israel denies. The problem is that PA appears to have identified UK defence firms and military hardware, as part of those tools - things that are actually used to defend this country. In the view of the home secretary, this has crossed the line from simply criminal to extremist - and a threat to national security.
