(Adnkronos) – Palestine Action activists clashed with police during a demonstration in London. Following the clashes, the British government intends to declare the group a “terrorist organization”. The protest was held in Trafalgar Square, with movement leaders calling for an “emergency mobilization” in response to the government’s plans. The demonstration was initially supposed to take place in front of Parliament, but the demonstrators were forced to move to Trafalgar Square after the Metropolitan Police established an exclusion zone.
The protesters, some of whom wore black masks, shouted at the police and there were scuffles, with officers forced to disperse the most boisterous activists. Police stormed the crowd to stop the masked protesters and made several arrests. The Palestine Action protest took place just days after two of its members broke into the RAF Brize Norton base and damaged two military aircraft in an action condemned by MPs and Prime Minister Keir Starmer. The incident, a serious security breach at the largest RAF base, is being investigated by counter-terrorism police.
Metropolitan Police Service Commissioner Mark Rowley said he was “shocked” by the protest and described Palestine Action as an “organized extremist criminal group”. The demonstration began at noon and quickly descended into chaos, with police rushing to take control. While the protest was underway, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced the decision to declare Palestine Action a “terrorist group” and that she would introduce a measure in Parliament next week to make membership and support of the group illegal.
