Police arrest 466 people over Palestine Action support at protest

More than 460 people have been arrested for supporting banned group Palestine Action, with a further five detained for assaulting police officers after protesters gathered in central London.

Hundreds attended Saturday’s demonstration in Parliament Square, organised by Defend Our Juries, with the Metropolitan Police warning it would arrest anyone expressing support for Palestine Action.

In an update posted on X on Saturday evening, Scotland Yard said 466 people had been arrested for supporting the group as of 9pm.

A further eight arrests were made for other offences, including five for assaults on officers. None were seriously injured, the force added.

The Met earlier said the detained protesters were taken to prisoner processing points in the Westminster area, and those whose details could be confirmed were bailed, with conditions not to attend any further protest in support of Palestine Action.

Those whose details were refused, or could not be verified, were taken to custody suites across London.

Charity Amnesty International described the mass arrests under UK terrorism law as “deeply concerning”.

The crowd, sat on the grass inside Parliament Square, could be seen writing “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” on white placards at 1pm, with the vast majority remaining silent.

Several demonstrators carrying placards that read “Palestine Action terrorises Britain while Hamas hides in hospitals, schools and mosques”, briefly walked along the crowd before being led away by police officers.

Other clusters of protesters who were not holding placards gathered around the Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela statues in the square singing pro-Palestinian chants.

Officers were holding individual demonstrators sat on the edge of the grass before escorting them through swelling crowds to police vans parked on the edge of the square.

A separate group of officers attended a protester lying next to the fenced-off Emmeline Pankhurst statue.

They later began arresting protesters sat in the middle of Parliament Square.

The officers lifted the protesters – some sitting and some lying flat – off the ground before escorting them away.

Onlookers applauded the protesters and shouted “Shame on you” at the police making arrests.

Protesters who were still sat in the middle of Parliament Square stood up together at 2pm and held their placards in the air.

One person was also arrested at a separate Palestine Coalition march, which set off from Russell Square heading to Whitehall via Aldwych and the Strand.

The arrest was “for a placard showing support for Palestine Action”, Scotland Yard said.

A woman wearing a Palestine Action T-shirt was arrested at an anti-racism protest in Belfast city centre on Saturday.

Videos shared online show her being told by police officers she was being arrested on suspicion of “possessing an article, namely a sign or T-shirt, that indicates support for Palestine Action”.

Membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison under the Terrorism Act 2000.

Earlier this week, the first three people to be charged with supporting Palestine Action in England and Wales were named.

Jeremy Shippam, 71, Judit Murray, 71, and Fiona Maclean, 53, have all been charged with displaying an article in a public place, arousing reasonable suspicion that they are a supporter of a proscribed organisation after their attendance at a previous demonstration last month.

Hundreds have been arrested in the wave of Defend Our Juries protests across the UK since the ban was implemented by Home Secretary Yvette Cooper last month.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper thanked police in London and across the country for their work to ensure peaceful protests, and officers’ “continued dedication in responding to support for a proscribed organisation”.

She said: “The right to protest is one we protect fiercely but this is very different from displaying support for this one specific and narrow, proscribed organisation. Palestine Action was proscribed based on strong security advice following serious attacks the group has committed, involving violence, significant injuries and extensive criminal damage.

“It also follows an assessment from the joint terrorism assessment centre that the group prepares for terrorism, as well as concerning information referencing plans and ideas for further attacks, the details of which cannot yet be publicly reported due to ongoing legal proceedings.

“Many people may not yet know the reality of this organisation, but the assessments are very clear, this is not a non-violent organisation. UK national security and public safety must always be our top priority.

“Their actions are not about the horrific suffering in the Middle East and do not reflect or represent the thousands of people across the country who are exercising their rights to protest peacefully.”

Sacha Deshmukh, chief executive of Amnesty International UK, said: “The protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists.

“We have long criticised UK terrorism law for being excessively broad and vaguely worded and a threat to freedom of expression. These arrests demonstrate that our concerns were justified.”

Published: 10/08/2025 by Radio NewsHub