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<\/a>\u201cThe police have only been able to arrest a fraction of those supposedly committing \u2018terrorism\u2019 offences, and most of those have been given street bail and allowed to go home. This is a major embarrassment to Yvette Cooper, further undermining the credibility of this widely ridiculed law.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Saturday evening, the home secretary thanked officers and reaffirmed the government\u2019s decision to ban Palestine Action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cMany people may not yet know the reality of this organisation, but the assessments are very clear \u2013 this is not a nonviolent organisation. UK national security and public safety must always be our top priority,\u201d Cooper said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The demonstration began at 1pm but officers made a small number of arrests beforehand. Soon after, officers began arresting people outside the green holding signs that referenced Palestine Action. One woman, while being dragged away by police, said: \u201cAll of you have loved ones, you\u2019re arresting the wrong people. Arrest the people over there [pointing towards parliament], arrest the people complicit in the genocide.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
From 1pm to 2pm, demonstrators holding signs that read \u201cI oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action\u201d were silent. \u201cIt\u2019s all very sedate, peaceful and moving,\u201d said Suzan Broom, who clapped and cheered for those being taken away by police. \u201cI\u2019ve been following them and saying thank you because I\u2019m too scared.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Two women taking part in the action, one in her mid-70s, were arrested by police midway through their interview with the Guardian. One said of the turnout: \u201cI think it\u2019s great, people are absolutely sick of seeing genocide on their screens.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She said the vandalism of RAF aircrafts by Palestine Action members was a \u201cprotest action, it\u2019s not at all terrorism\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThose planes are the terrorists. They\u2019re going over and shooting and killing children,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Zoe, one of those taking part in the demonstration, said: \u201cI along with hundreds of ordinary people have had enough of our government\u2019s collusion in genocide.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cYou can hear the claps and it\u2019s got like a family-friendly environment here. You\u2019ve seen it with your own eyes. It\u2019s completely peaceful and there\u2019s nothing vaguely terrorist right now. We\u2019re just being ordinary peaceful people saying we oppose genocide,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n She wore a large patch with the words \u201cJews Against Genocide\u201d. She said: \u201cI wear it clearly and with pride to make sure that other people recognise that there are many many Jews who do not support genocide of any nature.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cI\u2019m holding a piece of paper for goodness sakes, that\u2019s not a terrorist act. A terrorist act is intentionally starving 2 million,\u201d she said. \u201cI don\u2019t know what to say to [Palestinians], I\u2019m so sorry it\u2019s come to this. I wish we could do more but we\u2019re trying our best.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Officers searched the bags of those arrested. In one backpack handled with blue forensic gloves, they uncovered some bread and a milk carton filled with water.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Robert Del Naja, from the band Massive Attack, joined the sign-holders and said: \u201cUK civil liberties are trapped in a manufactured crisis. Peaceful citizens of conscience \u2013 including pensioners \u2013 have become terrorists, at the will of a human rights lawyer turned authoritarian who now lunges at opinions that expose the moral vacuum of his unrecognisable government.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some of those arrested were publicly processed on the street outside Scotland Yard, near the main demonstration, where crowds gathered and shouted \u201c\u2018shame on you\u201d at officers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Amnesty International called the mass arrests \u201cdeeply concerning\u201d.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists,\u201d said Sacha Deshmukh, the organisation\u2019s chief executive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe have long criticised UK terrorism law for being excessively broad and vaguely worded and a threat to freedom of expression. These arrests demonstrate that our concerns were justified.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Before the protest, a Home Office spokesperson said: \u201cThe home secretary has been clear that the proscription of Palestine Action is not about Palestine, nor does it affect the freedom to protest on Palestinian rights.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cIt only applies to the specific and narrow organisation whose activities do not reflect or represent the thousands of people across the country who continue to exercise their fundamental rights to protest on different issues. Freedom to protest is a cornerstone of our democracy and we protect it fiercely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/i.guim.co.uk\/img\/media\/8bdacd16e8518afcef6aca1ee934f45099938829\/1180_0_6827_5464\/master\/6827.jpg?width=445&dpr=1&s=none&crop=none\")
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