Met police arrest Gaza protesters for racism and hate banner comparing Israel to the Nazis

Release time：2024-05-21 06:36:36 Source：Global Grandstand news portal

A pro-Palestinian protester holding a banner comparing Israel to the Nazis and a demonstrator who hurled racist abuse at campaigners against anti-Semitism were two people arrested at a huge Gaza march today.

'Hundreds of thousands' marched through the streets of London in a series of protests today, some in support of a ceasefire in Gaza and others to call for an end to anti-Semitism.

An event organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) began at Parliament Square at 12pm, setting off at 12.30pm on a route via Whitehall, Piccadilly and Park Lane and then ending at Hyde Park, where speeches were given.

Former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn was spotted among the crowds alongside First Minister of Northern Ireland and Vice President of Sinn Féin Michelle O'Neill.

The two pro-palestine politicians were pictured hugging near a large banner.

A counter protest by  pro-Israeli groups against anti-Semitism was also held and overlapped in some places with the route of the pro-Palestinian march.

The Met Police told MailOnline: 'This man was seen on CCTV by officers in our operations room as the protest formed up. Officers on the ground were guided in and he was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence'

The force added that 'officers arrested a man (centre) who shouted a racist remark towards those in the Enough is Enough protest'

'Hundreds of thousands' of pro-Palestinian protesters marched through London today

Police officers detain a person as people take part in a pro-Palestine march on Whitehall in central London

Former Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn was spotted among the crowds

Mr Corbyn was spotted alongside First Minister of Northern Ireland and Vice President of Sinn Féin Michelle O'Neill

Two pro-palestine politicians were pictured hugging near a large banner

Protesters gather in Parliament Square ahead of the National March for Palestine

Protesters hold placards depicting the faces of Labour politicians Angela Rayner and Sir Keir Starmer

The pro-Palestinian march crossed paths with a counter-demonstration organised by Enough is Enough

Some protesters on the counter-march reported being subject to antisemitic abuse as the marches crossed paths.

Reverend Hayley Ace who was on the Enough is Enough counter-protest, was misidentified as a Jew while wearing a Star of David cap and was told to 'F*** off to Poland', the Campaign Against Antisemitism reported.

Reverend Ace said: 'Obviously Poland is where the Nazis built most of their concentration camps for the extermination of Jews. Comments like those that I received are common on these marches. How can anyone pretend they are peaceful?'

According to CAA, some pro-Palestinian protesters carried placards promoting conspiracies including one that read 'Our media, TV, radio and Government are controlled by Zionists'.

Another poster showed the Statue of Liberty feeding an Israeli baby with blood, invoking the blood libel.

A spokesperson for the charity said: 'We are told by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign that these are peaceful marches where Jews are given a warm welcome, but the reality is that these marches are rife with hatred, exactly as we keep saying.

'Now, even a Christian Reverend has had to experience antisemitic hatred from marchers because she was mistaken for being ‘quite openly Jewish’. 

'Instead of being effectively policed, much of the incitement and hatred is given a free pass by the Met. 

'It is time that they stop gaslighting the public about the nature of these marches. Sir Mark Rowley has the power to bring these marches under control, but he seems to prefer instead to appease the mobs. That is why over 10,000 people have already signed our petition for him to be replaced.'

Bella Wallersteiner, 29, who has Jewish heritage and 30 of whose relatives were murdered in the Holocaust, was at the protest and saw a number of offensive signs.

She said: 'It has become painfully routine, to the extent I've actually become slightly desensitised to it all.

'I'm sick of shouldering responsibility that should fall on the police. It's exhausting to constantly educate people about why these images are harmful.

'I shouldn't have to be the one policing these events!'

She added: '[I] just can't believe we've had six months of anti-Semitism masquerading as solidarity.

'If the Met can't cope, [the] government should take it out of their hands.' 

The Met told MailOnline it had arrested the man holding the Nazi sign. A spokesman said: 'This man was seen on CCTV by officers in our operations room as the protest formed up. 

'Officers on the ground were guided in and he was arrested on suspicion of a racially aggravated public order offence.' 

Bella Wallersteiner, 29, (pictured) who has Jewish heritage and 30 of whose relatives were murdered in the Holocaust, was at the protest and saw a number of offensive signs

Many demonstrators called for a ceasefire in Gaza

Dozens of police officers ensured pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel demonstrators were kept apart

Men and women held banners calling for a ceasefire

Many protesters held signs, including one man who was spotted holding a sign likening Israel to the Nazis

Protesters gather in Parliament Square ahead of the National March for Palestine, 27 Apr 2024

The protest is the 13th organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign since October 9 

The group bills itself as 'a community of people working together for peace, equality, and justice and against racism, occupation, and colonisation'

Pro-Palestine supporters gathered to protest in London today

Many carried Palestinian flags as they walked in front of Parliament

A static demonstration organised by Enough is Enough is also scheduled to take place 'at the same time' in Pall Mall, which is on the route of the Palestine march.

The force added that 'officers arrested a man who shouted a racist remark towards those in the Enough is Enough protest'.

Protesters today are campaigning for an end to the hostilities in the Gaza Strip with more than 34,000 Palestinians killed by Israel's ground and air offensive since de facto authority Hamas launched its shock assault on Israel on October 7.

Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) was due to hold a separate counter demonstration from 12pm until 2pm, but cancelled the protest citing safety concerns after police prevented its chief executive Gideon Falter from crossing a road through a pro-Palestinian protest last weekend.

As the Metropolitan Police insist they will 'police without fear or favour', Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist acknowledged a 'particular cause of fear and uncertainty in Jewish communities', with reports of some people avoiding the tube and feeling compelled to hide their identities on demonstration days.

One woman held up a sign that called Israel were 'baby killers'

She said: '[I] just can't believe we've had six months of anti-Semitism masquerading as solidarity'

Ms Wallersteiner added: 'If the Met can't cope, [the] government should take it out of their hands'

Protests and the issues raised within them remain sensitive to groups involved as the war in the southern Levant rages on with no immediate end in sight.

As Hamas today claimed to be studying the latest Israeli counter proposal for a potential ceasefire on Saturday, Palestinians already facing famine fear an impending invasion of the southern city of Rafah.

Much of the population has been displaced to the city in the wake of a sustained offensive through Gaza. The Palestinian Solidarity Campaign has organised protests to call for an end to hostilities since October 9, when Israel announced a 'complete siege' of Gaza, cutting off access to food, water and power.

Hamas remains steadfast that it will retain the hostages taken into Gaza on October 7 until ceasefire terms are agreed, however, with Israeli forces urgently trying to secure their release and the destruction of Hamas among their listed objectives.

Groups concerned about anti-Semitic rhetoric and the appearance of controversial slogans at rallies have met the pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

The Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) group was planning a 'walk together' event, also expected to attract thousands of people, but cancelled the event claiming it had received threats and identified 'hostile actors' posing a threat to Jews.

In February, The Community Security Trust (CST) reported a 589 per cent spike in antisemitism in the UK compared to the same period in 2022.

Police standing at barriers as crowds march past holding Palestinian flags and 'Free Palestine'  banners and placards

The crowds outside Parliament Square where the march started carrying banners and flags

A range of signs were seen at the march including those bearing the slogan 'From the river to the sea'. Other signs called for a ceasefire while some branded the war a genocide

A woman holding up a sign made out of cardboard that reads 'No more murder in our name' with a Palestinian flag and the star if David

The 4,103 recorded incidents nationwide marked the highest total in a calendar year reported to the organisation, per The Guardian.

The CST said Hamas's attack on Israel on 7 October was a 'trigger event [that] had a seismic effect on antisemitic incident levels in the UK … and the impact was instant'. 

Amid rising concerns for safety, The Metropolitan Police said in a statement yesterday that officers would be on duty across central London on Saturday to safeguard the events.

Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist, who is responsible for public order policing, said: 'Our objectives this weekend are to police without fear or favour, to protect the right to protest and to keep the peace. 

'All Londoners have a right to have their voices heard, just as they also have a right to go about their lives without fear and without being subject to serious disruption.

'The cumulative impact of almost seven months of protest is felt widely, but it has been a particular cause of fear and uncertainty in Jewish communities. 

'While there has been a Jewish presence on many of the PSC marches, there are many more Jewish people who do not travel into the centre of London on protest days, or who avoid the tube, hide their identities or otherwise change their behaviour. It is a reality that should concern us all. 

'I know there are people who feel the solution is to see these protests banned. The bar for such a decision is incredibly high – it requires a risk of serious public disorder of the sort we simply haven't seen either in this period of protest or for several years. 

Police in front of a barrier where pro-Israeli marchers gathered. They called for the hostages to be released and held signs calling Hamas terrorists 

A sea of israeli flags as a line of police officers stand in front keeping the two marches away from each other

A woman draped in an Israeli flag holds a sign calling Hamas terrorists 

Pro-Israel protesters marching through London waving flags

'But while we cannot apply for protests to be banned in the current circumstances, we can use powers under the Public Order Act and other legislation to impose conditions on marches and assemblies in an effort to prevent serious disruption, to keep those with opposing views apart and to ensure wider public safety.' 

The Met also provided statistics, claiming the main protests had ranged in size from 300,000 at the highest point to around 5-10,000 'in recent months'.

'There have so far been 415 arrests during protests. 193 of these have been for antisemitic offences,' the Met stated.

They said the majority of arrests had been 'in relation to placards, chanting or other expressions of hate speech'.

Arrests were also made for 'more typical public order offences as well as assault, obstruction and other disorder'.

The Met also claimed 15 terrorism arrests had been made at protests 'which is unheard of previously'.

'The majority of these have been on suspicion of support for proscribed organisations, namely Hamas.' 

The Met Police said they would police 'without fear or favour' at the protests today

Police attend the protest organised by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign in London, April 27 

Protesters gather in Parliament Square, London, ahead of the protest on Saturday

People gather in Parliament Square ahead of a pro-Palestine march in central London

Placards at the march on Saturday as protestors call for an end to hostilities in the Gaza Strip

Scotland Yard faced questions over its policing of demonstrations last week as the group's head, Gideon Falter, was shown in video footage clashing with an officer.

The video showed a large pro-Palestine demonstration moving through London as Mr Falter sought to cross the road, across the path of the march.

The officer offered Mr Falter a way out of the demonstration, to cross the road, without walking through it.

He stresses that 'that way you will be completely safe just as we promised', and suggests 'I've already seen you deliberately leave the pavement and walk against the march'.

At one point, the officer says: 'You are quite openly Jewish, this is a pro-Palestinian march, I'm not accusing you of anything but I'm worried about the reaction to your presence.'

Mr Falter later wrote in The Times that he had been 'treated like a criminal for being Jewish', with a source telling The Telegraph Rishi Sunak was 'appalled' by the remarks and threat to arrest the journalist for trying to 'push forward' past a police cordon.

Sunak said that he retained trust in commissioner Sir Mark Rowley but said the latter needed to rebuild the 'trust and confidence' of the Jewish community.

Speaking to BBC Breakfast, former Scotland Yard chief superintendent Dal Babu agreed that while the 'openly Jewish' comment was 'not acceptable', he felt the officers showed 'great restraint' and questioned the 'accuracy' of the 'narrative' shown in a shortened version of the clip, widely circulated.

Hamas today said it was studying the latest counterproposal regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza, a day after media reports said a delegation from mediator Egypt arrived in Israel in a bid to jump-start stalled negotiations.

The signs of fresh truce talks came alongside at least three Israeli air strikes during the night in Rafah, southernmost Gaza, according to AFP.

'Today, the Hamas movement received the official Zionist occupation response to the movement's position, which was delivered to the Egyptian and Qatari mediators on April 13,' Khalil al-Hayya, deputy head of Hamas's political arm in Gaza, said in a statement.

'The movement will study this proposal, and upon completion of its study, it will submit its response.'

Smoke billows following Israeli bombardment in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, on March 27

Displaced Palestinian children wait for a water supply tank to fill their containers amid soaring temperatures at a tent camp in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on April 26, 2024

A view of tents set up for displaced Palestinians amid fears of Israeli ground offensive on Rafah, April 25, 2024

Hamas has previously insisted on a permanent ceasefire, something rejected by Israel.

Egypt, Qatar and the United States have been unsuccessfully trying to seal a new truce deal in Gaza ever since a one-week halt to the fighting in November saw 80 Israeli hostages exchanged for 240 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons.

A delegation from Egypt arrived in Israel on Friday hoping to revive the truce negotiations, Israeli and Egyptian media reported.

There has been 'noticeable progress in bringing the views of the Egyptian and Israeli delegations closer', said Al-Qahera News, which is linked to Egyptian state intelligence services.

In early April Hamas had said it was studying a proposal, after talks in Cairo, and Al-Qahera reported progress. 

Days later Israel and Hamas accused each other of undermining negotiations.

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