British police have said that they arrested almost 900 people who were demonstrating in London against a ban on the group Palestine Action, which has been deemed a terrorist organisation by the government.
Almost 1,600 people have now been detained, many for silently holding signs supporting the group, since it was outlawed two months ago. Protesters say the ban on Palestine Action is an unwarranted curb on free speech and the right to protest.
The Metropolitan Police force said 890 people were arrested at Saturday's demonstration, the vast majority, 857, under the Terrorism Act for supporting a proscribed organisation. Some 33 were detained for other offences, including 17 for assaulting police officers.
Defend Our Juries, the campaign group organising the protest, said 1,500 people took part in the demonstration outside Parliament, sitting down and holding signs reading “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.”
Within minutes, police began arresting the demonstrators, as bystanders chanted “Shame on you,” and “Met Police, pick a side, justice or genocide.” There were some scuffles and angry exchanges as officers dragged away demonstrators who went limp as they were removed from the crowd.
“I’m a terrorist? That’s the joke of it”
Defend Our Juries said aggression had come from police officers and dismissed claims that protesters had been violent as “frankly laughable.”
More than 700 people were arrested at earlier protests, and 138 have been charged under the Terrorism Act.
Mike Higgins, 62, who is blind and uses a wheelchair, was arrested last month but returned to demonstrate on Saturday.
“And I’m a terrorist? That’s the joke of it,” he said. “I’ve already been arrested under the Terrorism Act and I suspect I will be today.
“Of course I’ll keep coming back. What choice do I have?”
Challenging the government ban
Palestine Action was banned under the UK's Terrorism Act of 2000.
Critics, including the United Nations and several campaign groups, have condemned the ban as legal overreach and a threat to free speech.
Proscription made it a crime to publicly support the organisation. Membership of, or support for, the group is punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Palestine Action has won approval from the High Court to challenge the ban, a ruling the government is seeking to overturn. The case is ongoing, with a hearing scheduled for September 25.
UN: New law “misuses the gravity and impact of terrorism”
The UN human rights chief has criticised the British government’s stance, saying the new law “misuses the gravity and impact of terrorism.”
The decision to designate Palestine Action as a terrorist group “raises serious concerns that counterterrorism laws are being applied to conduct that is not terrorist in nature, and risks hindering the legitimate exercise of fundamental freedoms across the UK,” Volker Turk warned.
He added that according to international standards, terrorist acts should be confined to crimes such as those intended to cause death or serious injury or the taking of hostages.
Huda Ammori, Palestine Action’s co-founder, has condemned the government’s decision to ban it as “catastrophic” for civil liberties, leading to a “much wider chilling effect on freedom of speech.”
The group has been supported by prominent cultural figures including bestselling Irish author Sally Rooney, who said she planned to use the proceeds of her work “to keep backing Palestine Action and direct action against genocide.”
About 20,000 people, by a police estimate, attended a separate pro-Palestinian march in London on Saturday.
