Latest news with #TerrorismAct
Glasgow Times
5 hours ago
- Politics
- Glasgow Times
Police update on Palestine Action protest during Trump visit
Police are preparing for protests at locations where the US President visits and in city centres, including Glasgow. Protests against Israel's offensive in Gaza are likely given the US support for Israel. (Image: AP) READ NEXT:Trump visit will be biggest police operation since Queen's funeral A number of people have been arrested in the last week for showing support for the group Palestine Action, which is proscribed under the Terrorism Act. Last Friday in Glasgow, activist Sean Clerkin was arrested under the act after he displayed a sign stating Genocide in Palestine Time for Action with the words Palestine and action in larger letters. He has been bailed under the condition he doesn't enter the city centre until his court date. Police preparing for the President's visit said the law will be applied to anyone showing support for the group. READ NEXT:Police prepared for Glasgow protests during Donald Trumps visit to Scotland Assistant Chief Constable, Emma Bond, Gold Commander for the police operation during the President's visit said assessments will be made by officers. (Image: Colin Mearns) She said: 'We will make decisions. Any support for Palestine Action, be that in terms of clothes worn, be that in terms of banners held, is now an offence under the Terrorism Act and people are liable to arrest for those offences. 'There is a requirement create that link in terms of showing support, so we will arrest at that stage to enable the further gathering of evidence to enable a case to be put forward to the Crown Office but I couldn't be specifically prescriptive. 'It is down to what we assess on the ground and not everything is as clear cut as it necessarily might be in some circumstances. 'We have had some cases where individuals have worn a t-shirt saying 'I support Palestine Action'. 'Those things are far clearer than we might face in other circumstances, so I couldn't be prescriptive but again, the responsibility will be on us to show the actions demonstrate support for Palestine action if there are arrests made.'
North Wales Chronicle
7 hours ago
- Politics
- North Wales Chronicle
Mass protest planned by 500 Palestine Action supporters in bid to get ban lifted
The action planned for August 9 in central London will see protesters holding signs that say: 'I Oppose Genocide, I Support Palestine Action' with 'non violent composure' for an hour or until they are arrested. A planning document has been posted online that says: 'Five hundred is more than double the total number of people arrested under the Terrorism Act in 2024. 'It would be practically and politically difficult for the state to respond to an action on this scale. 'Even assuming it had the physical capacity to arrest so many people on the same day, the political fallout from such an operation would be incalculable, causing irreparable damage to the reputation of the government and the police. We demand that you lift the ban on Palestine Action. Our government is actively involved in a genocide. The UK government is using anti-terror laws to silence people who are taking action against this genocide. Sign up at for a mass-action on August 9th. — Defend our Juries (@DefendourJuries) July 20, 2025 'Our assessment is that an action on this scale could be enough for the ban to be lifted. 'Charging and prosecuting at least 500 more people, in addition to the 200 people already arrested, is likely to be beyond the capacity of the state, given the current situation in the criminal justice system.' Palestine Action has been banned by the Government under terrorism laws, after it claimed an action which saw two Voyager planes damaged at RAF Brize Norton on June 20. The ban means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is now a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. A legal bid to challenge the ban at the High Court by the group's co-founder, Huda Ammori, is ongoing.
The National
8 hours ago
- Politics
- The National
Activist arrested at Glasgow pro-Palestine protest breaks silence
Veteran protester Sean Clerkin was arrested and charged under the Terrorism Act after he displayed a sign which read 'Genocide in Palestine, Time to Take Action' with the words '[[Palestine]]' and 'Action' enhanced at a demonstration in Glasgow city centre on Friday. The direct-action group Palestine Action was recently named a proscribed organisation in the UK, and it is a criminal offence to show support for the group. Speaking to The National, Clerkin recalled the fear he felt when he was held in a cell for around three hours after he was arrested for displaying a sign expressing support for a proscribed organisation. READ MORE: Scotland's people do not endorse these war crimes by Israel 'The most disturbing part of being on your own in a cell is you have no control over anything, and you're at their control,' he said. Clerkin added that despite being scared that police may raid his home while he was detained, he reminded himself why he decided to protest, for all the children, women, and men in Gaza who are risking their lives daily for food and are enduring extreme suffering at the hands of Israel's military. 'Being held in a police cell is nothing like what they're suffering,' he said. The 64-year-old said he believes that it is an enormous waste of taxpayer money arresting protesters holding up signs and that police resources would be better spent on tackling 'real crimes'. (Image: Gordon Terris) If found guilty, Clerkin, who has now been banned from entering the city centre of Glasgow until his court hearing on October 7, which he believes is more than just a coincidence, could face a £10,000 fine, a minimum jail sentence of six months with a maximum of 14 years. Earlier last week, 46 other protesters were arrested at a demonstration against Palestine Action being designated a proscribed terror group in central London. Despite knowing the risks that his actions could land him in jail, Clerkin decided standing up for his civil rights and showing solidarity with the people in Gaza was worth the risk. 'This is how this is,' he said. 'This is now Keir Starmer's Britain, where law-abiding citizens who show our conscience, who show that we care for our fellow human beings, are being arrested and jailed. 'That shows we're losing our civil liberties, freedom of association, freedom to protest, freedom of speech. 'These are now being eradicated, and we've got to stand up and fight for these rights.' (Image: Gordon Terris) Clerkin added that he held the sign because of his own conscience and because of his faith as a Christian. 'I believe in the sanctity of human life, and I'm a non-violent protester, always have been, but I do believe in direct action. 'I felt like I had to take stronger action as an act of conscience, and I believe what I did was morally the right thing to do. 'It was an act of conscience, even for the people of Palestine to show solidarity with them and their suffering.' During the same day Clerkin was arrested, an Israeli military chief who had overseen the slaughter of thousands of Palestinians visited the UK. Major General Tomer Bar (below), the head of the Israeli Air Force, reportedly attended a conference hosted by the Royal Air Force in Gloucester where he held a series of meetings with air force commanders. (Image: YouTube) When asked what he thought about the fact he was arrested for holding a sign showing support for Palestine on the same day Bar was hosted by RAF in the UK, Clerkin said: 'He is being invited as a guest of the British Government which means the British Government, the Labor Government, support genocide in Palestine by the Israelis. 'He should have been arrested as soon as he stepped on UK soil and taken into custody and handed over to the ICC at The Hague as an international war criminal." He added: 'The fact that he was hidden in secret and brought in here, and he has committed crimes against humanity, shows that the British Government are complicit in crimes of genocide, crime the crime of genocide, crime against humanity.' Clerkin's anger was not just reserved for the UK Government, and he was also immensely disappointed with the SNP as their MPs 'sat on their backsides and abstained' during the vote to proscribe [[Palestine]] Action. On Sunday, The National, along with The Ferret, revealed the minutes from the Scottish Government Minister Angus Robertson's secret meeting with Israel's deputy ambassador to the UK, Daniela Grudsky. It was revealed that the [[Scottish Government]] tried to set up an earlier meeting with John Swinney and the ambassador and was talking itself up as a 'critical friend' of Israel. Clerkin said the Scottish Government should follow the Irish government and be in 'complete unison with Palestine' and support a Palestinian state. 'Surely the SNP could have done the same instead of sitting on the sidelines,' Clerkin said. He added that the [[SNP]] MPs who abstained in the [[Palestine]] Action debate could have done more and voted with the independent MPs, like Jeremy Corbyn, against proscribing them as a terrorist organisation. (Image: Jordan Pettitt/PA Wire) 'I just know that the [[SNP]] leadership at Westminster and in Edinburgh is devoid of a spine. 'They're spineless. They're spineless chickens.' A veteran activist, Clerkin is best known for being the person who made the complaint to Police Scotland which led to Operation Branchform, a probe into the finances of the [[SNP]] which led to the arrests of Peter Murrell, Nicola Sturgeon, and Colin Beattie in 2023. Clerkin believes the proscription of Palestine Action has set a dangerous precedent and thinks the UK Government could go after peaceful protest groups like Extinction Rebellion next. 'It's a slippery slope to an authoritarian British state where there is no democracy,' he said. 'That's where we're sliding to, and it's a very, very bad day when this is happening.' Speaking about how he feels about his upcoming trial, Clerkin said: 'At the current time, I'm not anxious about it, I'm more anxious about what happens to the people in Palestine.'
South Wales Argus
10 hours ago
- Politics
- South Wales Argus
Mass protest planned by 500 Palestine Action supporters in bid to get ban lifted
The action planned for August 9 in central London will see protesters holding signs that say: 'I Oppose Genocide, I Support Palestine Action' with 'non violent composure' for an hour or until they are arrested. A planning document has been posted online that says: 'Five hundred is more than double the total number of people arrested under the Terrorism Act in 2024. 'It would be practically and politically difficult for the state to respond to an action on this scale. 'Even assuming it had the physical capacity to arrest so many people on the same day, the political fallout from such an operation would be incalculable, causing irreparable damage to the reputation of the government and the police. We demand that you lift the ban on Palestine Action. Our government is actively involved in a genocide. The UK government is using anti-terror laws to silence people who are taking action against this genocide. Sign up at for a mass-action on August 9th. — Defend our Juries (@DefendourJuries) July 20, 2025 'Our assessment is that an action on this scale could be enough for the ban to be lifted. 'Charging and prosecuting at least 500 more people, in addition to the 200 people already arrested, is likely to be beyond the capacity of the state, given the current situation in the criminal justice system.' Palestine Action has been banned by the Government under terrorism laws, after it claimed an action which saw two Voyager planes damaged at RAF Brize Norton on June 20. The ban means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is now a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison. A legal bid to challenge the ban at the High Court by the group's co-founder, Huda Ammori, is ongoing.
STV News
10 hours ago
- Politics
- STV News
Protesters urged to be 'peaceful' during President Donald Trump's visit to Scotland
Protestors have been urged to remain 'peaceful' and notify police of their plans during Donald Trump's visit to Scotland The US President will visit both of his golf courses in Scotland: Turnberry in Ayrshire and Menie in Aberdeenshire, between July 25 and 29. The President will meet with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer while in Aberdeen, while plans are being put in place for the President to meet First Minister John Swinney, according to the Scottish Government. Police are working on the assumption that there will be protests in Ayrshire, Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh Assistant chief constable Emma Bond, who is heading up the operation, said Police Scotland will take a 'proportionate' approach to ensure people can protest safely, with the force offering to engage with demonstrators ahead of time on a 'no surprises' basis. Bond told STV News 'We will absolutely look to accommodate and communicate with protest groups to make sure they are able to exercise those rights. 'Anybody who does plan to attend, I'd ask them to get in contact and speak to our protest liaison officers so we can maximise our no surprises approach. 'We have a style and desire that our approach is one that is a focused and positive one.' A warning was also issued to any supporters of Palestine Action planning to attend any protests during the President's visit. The ACC stated that people deemed to be supporting the proscribed group would be 'liable to arrest' under the Terrorism Act. The policing operation will be the biggest the force has faced since the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 2022. Although Trump's first visit since being voted in for a second term is 'complex', the large scale operation is something Police Scotland are 'very experienced' in dealing with, according to the ACC. The current plan involves local, national and specialist officer from Police Scotland as well as other forces following a request for mutual aid. ACC Bond said: 'It is a complex policing operation. 'One that focusses on maintaining public safety, ensuring we balance people's right to peaceful protest and making sure we minimise disruption to wider communities. 'It is a significant event but one where Police Scotland are very experienced in terms of planning operations and events at this scale.'. Get all the latest news from around the country Follow STV News Scan the QR code on your mobile device for all the latest news from around the country
