Police Detain Dozens at London Court Rally Backing Banned Palestine Action Group

On Thursday, the Metropolitan Police detained a large number of people gathered outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court in central London, where a rally was held to oppose the UK’s designation of Palestine Action as a terrorist organization. The demonstration, arranged by the activist collective Defend Our Juries, aimed to protest the commencement of trials against the first of thousands accused of supporting the group under the Terrorism Act.

Images showed crowds waving Palestinian flags and chanting against what they described as a crackdown on free expression. Critics linked the ban to the government’s handling of the Gaza war and rising settler attacks in the West Bank. Prime Minister Andy Burnham, newly in office, has been urged by Labour and rights groups to change policy, while Green Party leader Zack Polanski urged the prime minister to revoke the proscription. The police statement on X warned that expressing support for Palestine Action constitutes a criminal offence.