At least 42 people have been arrested at a protest against Palestine Action being designated a proscribed terror group, the Metropolitan Police said.
Protesters gathered for the second week in a row in central London after police reiterated that showing support for the group was a criminal offence.
Groups came together in central London on Saturday, with other demonstrations also planned across the UK, after police reiterated that showing support for the group was a criminal offence.
In total more than 70 people were arrested at protests in England and Wales against Palestine Action being designated a proscribed terror group.
On top of the arrests in London, 16 arrests were made in Manchester and 13 people were also held in Cardiff at other related demonstrations on Saturday.
The Metropolitan Police arrested 29 people at a similar demonstration last weekend.
Two small groups of protesters sat at the steps of both the Mahatma Gandhi and Nelson Mandela statues in Parliament Square for the demonstration, organised by campaign group Defend Our Juries, shortly after 1pm, and received a brief round of applause.
The individuals then wrote the message “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” with black markers on pieces of cardboard, and silently held the signs aloft, surrounded by Metropolitan Police officers, who formed a cordon around the Gandhi statue, and members of the media.
We are responding to a protest in support of Palestine Action.
— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) July 12, 2025
Officers are in the process of making arrests. We will issue any updates on this thread.
Officers could be seen searching the bags of protesters and taking their ID cards.
Some demonstrators could be seen lying on top of each other while police held their handmade signs.
Metropolitan Police officers could be seen carrying away two of the protesters lying in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue.
Four officers lifted each protester, one man and one woman, off the ground and carried them through crowds to waiting police vans.
Meanwhile, other standing protesters were being led away from the square to the vans.
All but one of the 42 arrests were for showing support for a proscribed organisation, while one person was arrested for common assault, the Met said.
Demonstrations were also planned for Manchester, Cardiff and Londonderry, Northern Ireland, on Saturday, the campaign group Defend Our Juries said.
Scotland Yard said its stance remains that officers will act where criminal offences, including support of proscribed groups or organisations, are committed.
The force added that this includes “chanting, wearing clothing or displaying articles such as flags, signs or logos”.
The terror group designation means that membership of, or support for, Palestine Action is a criminal offence punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
The move to ban the organisation came after two Voyager aircraft were damaged at RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire on June 20, an incident claimed by Palestine Action, which police said caused about £7 million worth of damage.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper announced plans to proscribe Palestine Action, saying that the vandalism of the planes was “disgraceful” and the group had a “long history of unacceptable criminal damage”.
