LONDON: Police officers detained 66 people on suspicion of supporting the banned Palestine Action during a protest outside the Labour Party conference in Liverpool on Sunday.
Merseyside Police subsequently de-arrested two individuals, while 64 others were held in custody and have now been released on bail. They were aged between 21 and 83 years old and were apprehended on suspicion of a terrorism offense.
The organizers of the protest, Defend Our Juries, said that around 100 individuals held signs reading “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” on Sunday afternoon outside the conference center.
In July, the UK government designated Palestine Action as a “terror organization” after the group took responsibility for damaging two Voyager planes at RAF Brize Norton base. The group is currently awaiting a court ruling on whether it will be permitted to appeal its case in the High Court and challenge the government’s decision.
“I’m risking arrest today under terrorism legislation because, as a former Labour councillor in Liverpool, I am deeply ashamed of how Labour is acting,” Keith Hackett, a 71-year-old protester, told The Independent.
Observers deployed by human rights charity Amnesty International said protesters were “hauled from the streets by police — a scene which just a few months ago would have been shocking but is quickly becoming the norm.”
An Amnesty spokesperson said: “There are serious human rights concerns around not only the proscription of Palestine Action, but also the chilling consequences this decision has had. People are being silenced and peaceful protesters are being pulled from our streets into police vans. The UK’s overly broad terrorism laws are being misused to suppress free speech.”
A spokesperson for Defend Our Juries said: “Instead of shutting down protest, it’s time the Labour Party took the responsibility to prevent genocide seriously and impose blanket sanctions on Israel including stopping the flow of arms from factories in this country.”
