ANAMBRA POLICE ACTION ON THE CULT CLASH THAT RESULTED IN THE FATAL INJURY OF FOUR PERSONS AT AFOR NAWFIA MARKET. (PHOTO). #PRESS RELEASE
British police arrested 365 people in central London on Saturday as supporters of the recently banned pro-Palestinian group Palestine Action deliberately defied the law to pressure the government to reconsider the ban.
The ban was enacted in early July after activists broke into a Royal Air Force base and vandalized two tanker planes to protest Britain’s support for Israel’s offensive against Hamas in Gaza. The new law makes it a crime to publicly support Palestine Action.
Supporters have held multiple protests across the U.K. in recent weeks, arguing that the law unlawfully restricts freedom of expression. More than 500 protesters gathered outside the Houses of Parliament, many holding signs reading “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action,” daring police to make arrests.
As the protest ended, organizers and police clashed over the number of arrests, with organizers claiming the law was ineffective and designed to punish those exposing government wrongdoing. The Metropolitan Police denied these claims, saying many at the protest were bystanders, media, or people not openly supporting the group, and stressed that anyone publicly backing Palestine Action was being or had been arrested.
Police noted that protesters aimed to be arrested en masse to strain police resources and the justice system.
The government banned Palestine Action after activists attacked the RAF Brize Norton airbase on June 20, damaging tanker planes as a protest against British military support for the Israel-Hamas conflict. The group had also targeted Israeli defense contractors and other sites linked to the Israeli military.
Supporters of Palestine Action are challenging the ban in court, arguing that the government overstepped by labeling the group a terrorist organization. Meanwhile, although Prime Minister Keir Starmer plans to recognize a Palestinian state later this year—angering Israel—many pro-Palestinian advocates in Britain say the government is not doing enough to end the Gaza conflict.
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