UK police arrest at least 200 people at Palestine Action protest in London

Critics accidental prohibition connected activistic radical stifles state of code and assembly and aims to curb pro-Palestine demonstrations.

Police successful London accidental they person arrested astatine slightest 200 radical astatine a protestation successful enactment of the radical Palestine Action, which was classified arsenic a “terror organisation” by the British authorities past month.

The Metropolitan Police said connected Saturday that 200 demonstrators had been arrested astatine Parliament Square “for showing enactment for a proscribed organisation”.

“It volition instrumentality time, but we volition apprehension anyone expressing enactment for Palestine Action,” the constabulary unit said successful an earlier station connected X.

The arrests are the latest astatine a bid of protests denouncing the government’s prohibition connected Palestine Action, a determination critics accidental infringes connected state of code and the close to protest, arsenic good arsenic aims to stifle demonstrations against Israel’s warfare connected the Gaza Strip.

Under the Terrorism Act 2000, rank successful oregon support for the group is present a transgression offence punishable by up to 14 years successful prison.

Reporting from Parliament Square connected Saturday, Al Jazeera’s Sonia Gallego said the menace of apprehension oregon punishment “hasn’t deterred immoderate supporters” of Palestine Action from expressing their backing for the group.

“Something arsenic elemental arsenic wearing a t-shirt saying, ‘I enactment Palestine Action’, oregon adjacent having that written connected a expanse of paper” could pb to an arrest, Gallego said.

Police officers detain protesters during a rally organised by Defend Our Juries, challenging the British government’s proscription of ‘Palestine Action’ [Jaimi Joy/Reuters]

In beforehand of Saturday’s protest, much than 200 radical had been detained successful a question of demonstrations crossed the United Kingdom denouncing the prohibition since it came into unit successful July.

More than 350 academics from astir the satellite signed onto an unfastened missive this week applauding a “growing run of corporate defiance” against the determination by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper to proscribe Palestine Action.

The signatories “deplore the repressive consequences that this prohibition has already had, and are particularly acrophobic astir the apt interaction of Cooper’s prohibition connected universities crossed the UK and beyond”, the missive read.

Israeli historiographer and University of Exeter prof Ilan Pappe, Goldsmiths prof Eyal Weizman, and governmental thinkers Michael Hardt and Jaqueline Rose were among those who signed the letter.

Meanwhile, a abstracted march organised by the Palestine Coalition radical was besides held successful London connected Saturday.

The Metropolitan Police said 1 idiosyncratic had been arrested astatine that march from Russell Square to Whitehall for displaying a banner successful enactment of Palestine Action.

Amnesty International UK has condemned the apprehension of peaceful protesters solely for holding signs, saying specified enactment constitutes “a usurpation of the UK’s planetary obligations to support the rights of state of look and peaceful assembly”.

BREAKING: Quakers are present being arrested astatine Parliament Square for holding signs which accidental "I reason genocide. I enactment Palestine Action"

There are inactive hundreds present who are collectively opposing genocide and the unjust prohibition of the nonstop enactment group. pic.twitter.com/YcfrV8vZ4l

— Defend our Juries (@DefendourJuries) August 9, 2025

Palestine Action has progressively targeted Israel-linked companies successful the UK, often spraying reddish paint, blocking entrances oregon damaging equipment.

The radical accuses the UK’s authorities of complicity successful what it says are Israeli warfare crimes successful Gaza, wherever Israel’s bombardment and blockade person killed tens of thousands of Palestinians since October 2023.

The British authorities issued the prohibition aft Palestine Action broke into a subject airbase in June and damaged 2 Airbus Voyager aircraft, utilized for air-to-air refuelling.

Manaal Siddiqui, a spokesperson for Palestine Action, told Al Jazeera that the craft “can beryllium utilized to refuel and person been utilized to refuel Israeli combatant jets”.

According to the group, planes from the Brize Norton basal besides alert to a British Air Force basal successful Cyprus to past beryllium dispatched to cod quality shared with the Israeli government.