https://arab.news/9gwpp
- ‘Biggest ever mass action yet’ in support of banned group to take place this weekend
- Further 66 people arrested at demo outside Labour Party conference in Liverpool
LONDON: The Metropolitan Police in London have said 134 people have been charged with allegedly supporting Palestine Action in the UK capital, The Independent reported.
It comes after 20 people became the latest to be charged under section 13 of the UK’s Terrorism Act for their part in demonstrations backing the proscribed group, which can carry a sentence of up to six months in prison.
The 20 were arrested on Aug. 9, and are due to appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on Nov. 24.
Palestine Action was banned in the UK after several high-profile incidents, including a break-in at a Royal Air Force base that saw damage done to two military aircraft.
Protests in support of the group have subsequently been held across the country, with campaigners seeking to overwhelm police stations and courts through the number of people arrested and charged under the Terrorism Act, which forbids showing support for a banned group.
Defend Our Juries, the group organizing demonstrations for supporters of Palestine Action, said more than 1,500 people are set to take part in another protest in London this weekend. It said it will be “the biggest ever mass action yet defying the ban on Palestine Action.”
Earlier this week, 66 people were arrested for taking part in a protest outside the governing Labour Party’s annual conference in Liverpool.
Two were subsequently released, but the remaining 64 were taken into custody on suspicion of terrorism-related offenses.
A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries said: “If they can’t enforce the ban on their own doorstep, how do they expect to stop the biggest act of mass civil disobedience in Trafalgar Square this weekend?
“It’s nothing short of a scandal that thousands of people are being arrested — from vicars and priests to students and retired healthcare workers — as our fundamental rights to free speech and protest have been stripped away, not to keep us safe, but to protect weapons manufacturers’ interests and enable Israel to continue to slaughter Palestinian people.”