Protesters calling for the ban on Palestine Action to be lifted are planning to stage a demonstration in London on Saturday that could result in hundreds being arrested.
The mass action is in support of a campaign to overturn the proscription of the group, which was banned under terrorism laws on 5 July.
Organisers are asking participants to hold up placards saying: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
Who is behind the protest?
The organisers are a group called Defend Our Juries, a group set up in March 2023 to campaign on behalf of a woman who stood outside a climate activist trial holding a placard about jury rights.
Trudi Warner was arrested after holding a sign saying: “Jurors, you have an absolute right to acquit according to your conscience.”
The group has also been involved in supporting Just Stop Oil activists, drawing attention to what it describes as a “constitutional crisis” in courts as climate activists say new restrictions prevent them explaining their motivations to juries in England and Wales.
Among those involved in Defend Our Juries is Tim Crosland, a former government lawyer who held senior roles at organisations including the National Crime Agency and the Serious Organised Crime Agency, where he was a deputy director.
He was disbarred in 2023 after he was fined £5,000 for criminal contempt of court in 2021 after deliberately making public a supreme court ruling related to Heathrow airport before the result was officially announced.
What is being planned?
Participants are being encouraged to hold aloft placards saying “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action” at a location in central London at 1pm for an hour, or until arrested.
Organisers say it will only go ahead if at least 500 people are committed to it. Defend our Juries says well over that number have signed up to doing so but a decision about proceeding will be made on Tuesday. A location is yet to be announced but it will be in the Westminster area.
As of Monday evening, as many as 1,000 people had signed up to take part in the action, according to Defend Our Juries.
The group says that similar actions last month have “changed the meaning” of an arrest under the Terrorism Act and that it has come to be regarded as a “badge of honour” by those involved in the campaign to overturn the ban on Palestine action.
What can the police and government do?
Since the proscription of Palestine Action, police have made arrests at previous events where protesters have held up banners saying: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
The Metropolitan police said on Monday: “Our officers will continue to apply the law in relation to Palestine Action as we have done since its proscription. Anyone showing support for the group can expect to be arrested.”
Tactical options include carrying out pre-emptive arrests, placing roadblocks and imposing conditions. Police have significant leeway but run a risk that the courts could strike them down at a later stage.
Other options available to the police include applying for a section 14 order under the Public Order Act 1986, which allows the police to impose conditions on public assemblies. Such an order was used recently in relation to protest activity outside a hotel in Epping, Essex where asylum seekers were being housed.
Police forces can apply for a protest to be banned, a rarely used option, if they believe the risk of serious public disorder cannot be managed by imposing conditions on a protest. Any ban must be approved by the home secretary.
Could the police be overwhelmed?
The action is due to take place an hour after the start of a march in central London which the Palestine Solidarity Campaign and others are organising to draw attention to the plight of starving Palestinians in Gaza.
Coincidentally, a range of protests against the use of hotels to house asylum seekers is expected to take place this weekend in London and elsewhere, with significant far-right involvement, along with counter-protests by anti-racism activists and trade unionists.
The Metropolitan police said on Monday that it was aware that Defend Our Juries was encouraging people to turn out with the intention of placing a strain on the police and the wider criminal justice system.
“While we will not go into the specific details of our plan, the public can be assured that we will have the resources and processes in place to respond to any eventuality,” said the force.
Nevertheless, Britain’s largest force may have to consider whether it needs aid from other forces.
Defend Our Juries says it believes that the arrests of 500 people could put serious strain on the number of available places for detaining those in custody in London.
