London
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British police are set to be given greater authority to close with repeated protests on Sunday after hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists were arrested in central London for supporting the actions of the banned activist group Palestinian.
He was arrested on Saturday at Trafalgar Square in central London in support of the group, according to London metropolitan police.
The home office announcement comes after police and lawmakers ask organizers to cancel Saturday’s “Lift the Ban” protest. This came just days after the attack on the Manchester Synagogue, where two people were killed in Yom Kippur, a sacred day in Judaism.
The protest organizers defended our ju-seekers, rejected those calls, saying, “Canceling a peaceful protest will result in a terrifying victory.”
The Jewish activists were among the 493 people arrested Saturday, including the 79-year-old daughter of a Holocaust survivor who was arrested for the third time, and Elizabeth Morley, a terminally ill Jewish man, organisers said.
As most other protesters arrested, Jewish activists had signs that read, “I am against genocide and support Palestinian actions.”
Anglican priest, 83-year-old Rev. Sue Perfit, was also among those arrested on Saturday. Videos from the protest showed older people and disabled people among those arrested, including blind people using mobility cane and blind people using two wheelchairs.
Citing the mass arrests in Saturday’s announcement, the Home Office said the expanded police powers “as soon as possible” would allow additional conditions to be placed on what is called “repeated protests.”
The authority gives senior police officers the authority to prohibit or transfer protests based on “cumulative impacts.”
Since Palestinian actions were designated as a terrorist group in July, more than 2,000 people have been arrested in similar demonstrations across the UK.
The group, which aims to disrupt the operations of arms manufacturers supplying the Israeli government, was banned after two activists invaded the UK’s largest air force base and damaged two military aircraft.
Our ju umpire estimated on Saturday that more than 1,000 people had gathered to oppose the group’s ban, in line with previous “ban” demonstrations.
More than 890 activists were arrested in September protests at London’s Parliament Square. Police figures show that 532 people were arrested at the August demonstration, with half of those over 60 years old being over 60 years old. And nearly 100 people arrested were in their 70s and 15 were in the 80s, police said.
Since the Hamas attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023 and the Israeli war in Gaza, pro-Palestinian demonstrations led by various other groups have been held frequently in London.
The greater powers for police will be introduced through an addition to the existing police law, the Public Order Act.
The home office said that if new rules are raised, police will be given the authority to “instruct organizers to hold events elsewhere” if “weeks of protests were held on the same site and repeatedly caused obstacles.”
“Anyone who violates the terms will risk arrest and prosecution,” he said.
The government’s proposal has been filled with intense criticism from civil liberty advocates and a few opposition lawmakers. Many have already condemned the designation of terrorism in Palestinian actions as an attack on free speech, and warned that applying terrorist laws to such groups would set a dangerous precedent for the right to protest.
Amnesty International UK Director of Law and Human Rights Tom Sutherden denounced the announcement on Sunday, calling it “authorable” and took the latest steps the government took to limit peaceful protests.
“Is the government seriously suggesting that people who protest that decision should be able to make only a limited number of times? That’s a ridiculous proposal, and if not, this announcement is a sardonic attempt that appears harsh,” he said.
Metropolitan Police said Friday that arresting protesters and, where necessary, “supporting terrorist organizations” would otherwise use resources directed to protect Jews from violence.
The protest organizers said, “I urged and agreed to the police to choose to prioritize community protection rather than arresting those peacefully opposed to the absurd and harsh bans of direct action groups across the country.
British Secretary of Home Affairs Shabana Mahmoud said in a statement on Sunday that he had repeated the protests.
“This is particularly evident in relation to considerable fear within the Jewish community and has been expressed to me many times in recent difficult times,” she added.
In a statement, British human rights group Liberty said the police already have “a huge force to limit protests” and said “making them even more harmful will further undermine our rights, while not being able to keep people safe from violence like the horrific and heartbreaking anti-Semitic attacks in Manchester.”
“In times of fear, people naturally want to act, but limiting protests can promote tensions by eliminating legal and safe ways for people to listen. Using protests to challenge governments and stand up to what we believe must be at the heart of democracy,” Liberty said.
He defended the ju judges who call the government’s Sunday move “an extraordinary new humiliation against our democracy,” saying it plans a day of “large civil disobedience” leading up to the court hearing in November.
CNN’s largest saltman contributed to this report.
