A BAREFOOT protester who jumped over a Parliament fence and scaled Big Ben has been arrested after he was lifted down on a cherry picker.
The individual was safely removed from Elizabeth Tower at 12:12 a.m. following a harrowing 17-hour ordeal clinging to the famous structure.
Earlier in the day, the protester had posted video showing himself with bleeding feet on a ledge several metres up.
Cops were called to the bizarre scene at 7.24am this morning when he jumped a fence and began his dangerous climb.
Bridge Street, on the north end of Westminster Bridge, was closed to allow emergency services to try and resolve the incident.
The protester live-streamed his climb and later removed his shoes as he continued to climb the historic building with his bloodied feet.
Captivating video captured him strolling along Westminster Bridge before swiftly scaling the perimeter fence with the help of a stone pillar in a mere thirty seconds.
A fire engine arrived shortly after and raised a cherry picker to the same height as the man’s position on the tower.
He was heard shouting: “I’m not going anywhere. I’m going higher, if you come closer.”
An aerial ladder platform was lifted up several times towards the man to negotiate with him.
At least three people standing on the crane were seen talking with the man on multiple occasions, who is several feet away.
Tours of the Parliamentary Estate were cancelled for the day due to “security” issues.
A representative from the parliament commented: “We have been informed of an incident on the Parliamentary Estate today, with the Metropolitan Police taking the lead and receiving support from the London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service.
“Parliament takes security extremely seriously, however we do not comment on the specifics of our security measures or mitigations.
“As a result of this incident, tours of the Parliamentary Estate today have unfortunately had to be cancelled.”
In a statement, the Met said the rescue had become protracted due to the dangerous nature of where the man was.
They said: “We worked with other agencies including the London Fire Brigade and deployed specialist officers to bring this incident to a close as quickly as possible whilst minimising risk to life.”
Earlier, a Met spokesperson said: “At 7.24am on Saturday March 8 officers were alerted to a man climbing up the Elizabeth Tower at the Houses of Parliament.
“Officers are at the scene working to bring the incident to a safe conclusion.
“They are being assisted by the London Fire Brigade and the London Ambulance Service.”
A spokesman for London Fire Brigade (LFB) said: “Firefighters are responding alongside the Metropolitan Police Service to reports of a person scaling the Palace of Westminster.”
Crews from Lambeth, Chelsea, Soho and Islington fire stations were deployed, LFB added.
It comes as the Metropolitan Police blocked a pro-Palestine march from gathering near a synagogue in central London.
Protesters targeting the BBC were planning to gather outside Broadcasting House in Portland Place on March 8.
But police said they imposed conditions under the Public Order Act to prevent the rally from gathering in the area.
They said it risked causing “serious disruption” to a nearby synagogue on a Saturday, the Jewish holy day, as congregants attend Shabbat services.
The Met said it recognised “the important rights of people to protest and we have no wish to limit those, unless to prevent serious disruption”.
It added: “Accordingly, we have identified an area reasonably close to Portland Place where the assembly can take place.”
The protest, which was organised by Palestine Pulse, IJAN, XR for Palestine and others, was advertised with a 1pm start time.
