Eight individuals have been apprehended at a pro-Palestine demonstration that had intended to pass by the BBC and a synagogue but was called off and relocated.
The Metropolitan Police refuted allegations of creating a ‘ring of steel’ around Broadcasting House, asserting that their officers would be stationed close by following their intervention to prevent the protestors’ initial plan to congregate at Portland Place.
The Met obstructed the march from assembling there due to the close proximity of Broadcasting House to a synagogue, citing concerns that the demonstration could lead to ‘substantial disruption’ to the Jewish holy day, especially as worshippers partake in Shabbat services.
Hundreds of people have started to gather in Whitehall, London, instead for the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) protest with more than 1,000 on duty for the rally.
A man was arrested on suspicion of holding a placard suggesting support for banned organisations, while four people were arrested on suspicion of public order offences and three others on suspicion of breaching conditions put in place for the protest.
One of the conditions prevents anyone involved in the protest from entering a specific area around Portland Place.
Protesters can be seen holding signs that read ‘Gaza. Stop the massacre’ and ‘Stop arming Israel’ while a large group of people marched from Trafalgar Square holding a banner that reads ‘Labour, Tories, BBC. You show Russia’s crimes but hide Israel’s. Why?’
A masked protester wearing a Celtic football tracksuit was seen being handcuffed by police and escorted away from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) rally in Whitehall, with a large group following with megaphones and chanting: ‘Let him go.’
Also at Saturday’s protest, a woman was laid on the ground as a group of police officers appeared to be detaining her, prompting a large crowd to surround the officers and shout ‘you’re a disgrace’, ‘shame on you’ and ‘let her go’.
A minor scuffle broke out as police attempted to push protesters away before officers took the woman behind some barriers while people continued to chant ‘let her go’.
Former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn is among the demonstrators who announced they will walk peacefully from the stage near Downing Street to the BBC.
They added that if police stop them ‘which they probably will’, they will leave flowers at their feet ‘to mark their complicity’.
Taking to X (formerly Twitter), the Met Police wrote: ‘Officers are actively looking at banners and placards to spot where people cross the line from political speech into criminality.
‘One man has been arrested for holding a placard suggesting support for proscribed organisations, bringing the number of arrests so far to seven.’
They also reminded that of there is a condition in place to stop protesters from ‘entering a defined area around Portland Place’.
‘Officers have been deployed since early this morning to ensure that condition is not breached,’ the social media post added.
The force added that a woman had been arrested on Friday for inciting others to breach the force’s restrictions.
A 61-year-old woman was arrested on suspicion of inciting others to breach Public Order Act conditions after she was allegedly heard at a rally on January 10 encouraging other protesters to do so, police said.
The Met said further investigations into other allegations of inciting people to breach conditions are ongoing.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner Ade Adelekan said more than 1,100 officers are due to be deployed on Saturday, with 200 coming from other forces.
Questioned on whether the Met was putting a ring of steel around Broadcasting House, he said: ‘I wouldn’t describe it as a ring of steel.
‘What I would describe it as is a visible presence of officers in and around the BBC/Portland Place area and surrounding streets.
‘Firstly, their role is to engage with people, make sure people understand the conditions that are around there, and generally do their policing duties as they would do every day.
‘If anyone is considering breaching those conditions, we have brought officers in from other forces, eight other forces, to assist – so we have got significant forces to enforce any breaches of conditions.’
Having ‘considered the likely impact of the PSC’s plans’, the Met Police announced on Thursday it would use its powers under the Public Order Act to prevent the demonstrators gathering in Portland Place and nearby area.
Police have powers under the Act to insisted the route of a protest march should be altered to prevent ‘intimidation, serious public disorder, serious damage to property or serious disruption to the life of the community’.
In a statement, the police said it had considered the ‘cumulative impact’ of regular protests over a prolonged period that have taken place on Saturdays and ‘on numerous occasions’ in the vicinity of synagogues.
The force said it acknowledged the planned protest had been ‘a cause of increased concern for many Jewish Londoners’ and the it could have brought ‘serious disruption.’
On Thursday, senior Conservative MP Bob Blackman said those who defy police orders by deliberately gathering outside a synagogue should face the ‘full force of the law’.
The PSC described the Met’s conditions as ‘repressive’, saying: ‘We reiterate our call for the police to lift the repressive restrictions they have imposed and allow us to march.
‘If they continue to refuse to do so and prevent us from marching, we will rally on Whitehall in protest.’
In a statement, Campaign Against Antisemitism claimed pro-Palestine marches posed a ‘threat’ to synagogues.
A spokesperson said: ‘It is shameful that the Met has refused to act on that threat all this time and is mustering a show of strength only now that it appears that the war might be ending.
‘The least that it can do is see this tokenistic gesture through and finally limit these marches to static protests, as we have been urging for over a year.’
In its own statement, charity Community Security Trust, which aims to provide safety to Jewish people, said of the planned protest: ‘We have been working closely with the police and with affected Jewish community locations to put sufficient security in place so that services and other activities can go ahead in safety tomorrow.’
