Add StudioX as a preferred source on GoogleLondon’s Metropolitan Police have arrested at least 139 people at a rally against the United Kingdom’s ban on Palestine Action, according to Al Jazeera. Police had warned people not to attend, and the protest went ahead anyway.
Hundreds gathered outside the United States embassy in London on Saturday. Palestine Action is classified as a terrorist organization under UK law.
What police said
In a post on X on Saturday evening, the Metropolitan Police said the number of people arrested had risen to 139. Earlier in the day the force had reported 48 arrests.
Police said most of the arrests were for expressing support for a proscribed organization.
The ban took effect in July last year, under then-Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Saturday’s rally was the first mass protest against it since Andy Burnham became prime minister in July, Al Jazeera reported.
The demonstration comes ahead of a Supreme Court appeal on Wednesday challenging the group’s proscription.
Criticism of the ban
Labour MP John McDonnell responded to the police statement on X. He said that protesting against the government’s decision to ban an organization cannot automatically be read as supporting it, or as committing an arrestable offence. He added that he believes the government made the wrong decision.
The designation has caused uproar among parts of British society. Critics argue it is part of a wider crackdown meant to silence pro-Palestinian voices. Proscription places Palestine Action on a list of banned groups that also includes al-Qaeda and ISIL (ISIS).
Felix Jakens, head of communications and campaigns at Amnesty International UK, called on the government to reverse the ban. He described the scenes of people being taken away in police vans for holding placards as “a disgraceful attack on freedom of speech.” He also urged reform of the laws so that communities have more power to demonstrate on issues they care about.
Protest organizers’ claims
Defend Our Juries, which organized the protests, said Saturday’s arrests brought the total number of people detained for defying the ban to more than 4,000 since July 2025. A spokesperson, quoted by the UK news agency Press Association, described the arrests as part of vigils held peacefully and silently.
The spokesperson claimed the ban was modelled on a playbook used by US President Donald Trump. The group also claimed the government was appeasing Trump and Israeli weapons companies that Palestine Action had disrupted, rather than responding to any terrorist threat. These are the group’s claims, not established facts.
Demonstrators in London and in Edinburgh carried placards reading “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.” A separate protest took place outside the US consulate in the Scottish capital, where no arrests were reported.
Source: Al Jazeera
Harnaik Singh Rathor is the Founder, Publisher, and Editor-in-Chief of StudioX News Canada, Canada's multilingual digital news network serving multilingual diaspora communities across Canada. With a background in media production, public relations, and multicultural communications, he founded StudioX Film and TV Corporation to bridge the gap between mainstream Canadian media and the country's diverse immigrant communities. He is a member of the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ), RTDNA Canada, CPRS Vancouver, NEPMCC, and the Canadian Freelance Union (Unifor). Based in Surrey, British Columbia. | LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/harnaiksinghrathor/ | Muck Rack: https://muckrack.com/harnaiksinghrathor | Email: editor@studioxnews.ca
