First arrests of Palestine activists for chanting ‘calls for intifada’ since ban
Four people have been arrested on suspicion of racially aggravated public order offences after allegedly shouting ‘calls for intifada’ at a pro-Palestinian protest.
A third person was arrested for obstructing the previous arrests, the Met Police said after more than a hundred gathered to show support for hunger strikers in prison.
The protest, organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, took place outside the Ministry of Justice building in Westminster hours after the Met announced that anyone chanting ‘globalise the intifada’ would be detained.
Intifada is an Arabic word for a rebellion or uprising.
The second intifada was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its occupation in 2000. The violence is estimated to have resulted in the deaths of around 3,000 Palestinians and 1,000 Israelis, as well as 64 foreign nationals.
A Met spokesman said: ‘One arrest was for obstruction of a constable in the execution of his/her duty.
‘The other four were for racially aggravated public order offences, all involving the alleged shouting or chanting of slogans involving calls for intifada.’
The Met said people would be arrested for chanting the phrase because the ‘context has changed’ in the wake of the Bondi Beach terror attack that killed 15 people.
Police chiefs warned hours before that officers will ‘act decisively and make arrests’, adding that the measures were designed to ‘deter intimidation’.
UK’s Chief Rabbi Sir Ephraim Mirvis described the move by the police forces as ‘an important step towards challenging the hateful rhetoric’ seen on Britain’s streets.
Dozens of activists gathered outside the Ministry of Justice building in Westminster from 6pm, where they waved flags and banners and were addressed by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
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He said: ‘History will show that it was the decent, ordinary people of this country who stood up for Palestine.’
Officers were seen walking into the crowd and removing people from the pro-Palestine protest after chanting took place.
Some people were seen scuffling and arguing with officers as they were taken to nearby police vans.
Human rights campaigner Peter Tatchell, who was at most of the protest, told Metro he did not hear people chanting about intifada.
He said pro-Palestine supporters were chanting: ‘Resisting genocide is not a crime, justice delayed is justice denied.’
While the main protest ended at around 7.15pm, Mr Tatchell said a core group of activists stayed on and continued chanting.
He condemned the Met’s decision to arrest activists over cries mentioning intifada, saying: ‘To criminalise that slogan is a shocking attack on free speech.
‘Even if you find the slogan “globalise the intifada” offensive, it is not a crime. It is lawful free speech.
‘People are making the false assumption that “globalise the intifada” means attacking Jewish people, which is completely untrue.’
Following the joint announcement from the Metropolitan Police and Greater Manchester Police that protesters who chant ‘globalise the intifada’ will be arrested, prosecutors said they will consider each case on its own merits.
Palestinian Solidarity Campaign director Ben Jamal described the move as ‘another low in the political repression of protest for Palestinian rights’.
He said police did not consult with the coalition who organise protests ‘before making this far-reaching statement on our rights’.
‘The horrific massacre in Sydney, Australia should not be used as a justification to further repress fundamental democratic rights of protest and free speech in this country,’ Mr Jamal added.
It came after protesters gathered outside HMP Bronzefield in Surrey, where Qesser Zuhrah – pro-Palestine activist on hunger strike in the prison – was said to be gravely ill.
After Zuhrah was taken away in an ambulance this afternoon, a scuffle broke out between protesters and police outside the jail, with several protestors appearing to attempt to block a police car.
A Surrey Police spokesman condemned the disorder outside the prison and said two emergency workers had been injured in the clashes.
Who are the hunger strikers?
From top left: Qesser Zuhrah, Amu Gib, Heba Muraisi, Jon Cink, Teuta Hoxha, Kamran Ahmed, Lewie Chiaramello and Muhammed Umer Khalid (Picture: Prisoners for Palestine)
Qesser Zurah, Amu Gib, Heba Muraisi, Jon Cink, Teuta Hoxha and Kamran Ahmed have all been on hunger strike for more than a month while in custody over their alleged roles in pro-Palestine activity targeting a defence company plant and an RAF base.
They were later joined in the protest by Lewie Chiaramello and Muhammed Umer Khalid. Ahmed was hospitalised on November 25 after going into his fourth week of a hunger strike. Hoxha was hospitalised two days later, on November 27, as her health deteriorated rapidly, according to campaign group Prisoners For Palestine.
Concerns are now mounting over the condition of the activists, who have been in prison for well over a year before they are tried, breaking the UK’s six-month pre-trial detention limit.
The Times reports that lawyers for the eight protesters have claimed in a letter to justice secretary David Lammy that without intervention, the deaths of the hunger strikers were ‘increasingly more than a mere possibility. It is a likelihood.
As many as 58 MPs have also signed an early day motion expressing ‘extreme concern’ about the condition of the hunger strikers.
Former Guantanamo Bay detainee Mansoor Adayfi announced he would be joining the hunger strikes.
In a statement he said: ‘Hunger strikes are not protests of choice. They are protests of last resort.
‘The British government wants these men and women to disappear quietly.
‘The media wants to look away. This silence is a weapon of violence.
‘Today, I am joining this hunger strike in solidarity.
‘I do this because I see now that Guantánamo is embedded in the UK prison system.’
The Ministry of Justice said: ‘We continually assess prisoners’ wellbeing and will always take the appropriate action, including taking prisoners to hospital if they are assessed as needing treatment by a medical professional.
‘His Majesty’s Prison and Probation Service has assured ministers that all cases of prisoner food refusal are being managed in accordance with the relevant policy, and with appropriate medical assessment and support, consistent with prisoner rights.’
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