Downing Street has urged people not to take part in a protest in support of the banned group Palestine Action as police warned they would arrest anyone breaking terrorism laws.
Palestine Action has been banned under terrorism laws, and this weekend a large event protesting against its proscription has been organised by the group Defend Our Juries.
Asked if the government would encourage people not to attend the protest, Keir Starmer’s official spokesperson said: “Any action that is in support of a proscribed group in the UK, of course we do not support and the court has confirmed their continued proscription status.”
The spokesperson added: “The home secretary previously said that those who seek to support this group may yet not know the true nature of this organisation, but people should be under no illusion this is not a peaceful or non-violent protest group.”
Defend Our Juries is asking those taking part to to hold up signs saying “I Oppose Genocide, I Support Palestine Action,” which have resulted in the police making arrests at other events.
The group plans to make a decision on Tuesday on whether it will proceed with the action but it is confident that more than 500 people are committed to taking part.
However, a source with knowledge of the police’s early planning for this Saturday’s event said: “If they think that by turning up with significant numbers that we can’t arrest them for breaking terrorism laws, they need to think again.
“They will be arrested. However we have to do it, they will be arrested for breaking terrorism laws.”
The Met is aware of Saturday’s planned protest and is sceptical of claims that thousands of people could turn up. The force believes that a total in the low hundreds is more likely. Anyone arrested risks a terrorism conviction.
At other events that led to mass arrests, the Met has arrested people, confirmed their identities and home addresses and then quickly released them on bail so they could be dealt with later.
That tactic was used for an anti-immigration protest in Whitehall last summer and for past Extinction Rebellion protests at which scores of people were arrested.
Police resources will be stretched at the weekend as a large, separate pro-Palestinian march is also scheduled for Saturday and anti-immigration protests are also expected.
A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries denied any plot to overwhelm the police and the courts system, as was reported in the Telegraph on Monday. The campaign was not organised by Palestine Action, the spokesperson said, adding that a briefing document was available openly on the Defend Our Juries website.
“It’s great the Telegraph is helping us to spread the word but there are serious inaccuracies in their story. We are not the ones planning to ‘overwhelm’ the system. If the Met exercises common sense and discretion and upholds its obligation to uphold the right of people to exercise their rights then nothing is being overwhelmed,” they added.
“It is a difficult position for Sir Mark Rowley [the Metropolitan police commissioner] to be in. Based on what has happened on previous occasions it would be surprising if no one is arrested but on the other [hand] everyone is going to be doing the same thing and it will be a challenge to arrest more than 500 people given that we think there are about 520 available police cells in London at any one time,” they added.
They believed Rowley would also be factoring in last week’s high court ruling giving permission to the co-founder of Palestine Action to bring a legal challenge to the home secretary’s decision to ban the group.
“On top of the immense costs of this operation and shifting police from around the country then you have the prospect of hundreds and hundreds of payouts that the Met would have to make if the ban is deemed illegal, and we believe that will happen even if it means going all the way to Europe.”
Other forces had exercised discretion not to arrest people at similar protests in Derry, Edinburgh and elsewhere, they added.
The protests would take place regularly in future, they said, adding that it was becoming “a badge of honour” to be arrested. Defend Our Juries has had discussions with MPs about taking part but there was a reluctance on the basis of concerns it could lead to suspension from parliament.
The Met’s plans will evolve throughout the week, and police chiefs will consider whether the force – Britain’s largest – may need to call on mutual aid from others to manage.
The Met faces dangers from both sides of the debate. Supporters of Palestine Action may accuse police of being heavy-handed if they make mass arrests, while those on the right may accuse the Met of going soft if people openly break terrorism laws and are not arrested.
