POLICE have arrested hundreds of people during a mass vigil in central London to oppose the ban on campaign group Palestine Action.
More than 1,000 people gathered in Trafalgar Square for the demonstration on Saturday, with many holding signs saying, “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
Police carried many people away from the demonstration. At one point, an elderly woman with walking sticks was escorted away by police.
The Metropolitan Police said they arrested 212 people for allegedly showing support for a proscribed orgnanisation.
It said the ages of those arrested range from 27 to 82.
One demonstrator told Al Jazeera he was taking part in the vigil because he “believed in the democracy”.
“I think Britain has now descended into a non-democratic situation and I think that is very dangerous [for] free speech,” he added.
Defend Our Juries (DOJ), a United Kingdom-based activist group that organised the protest, demanded that the government lift the ban on Palestine Action, and drop all charges and investigations into those who have been arrested under the Terrorism Act, for allegedly supporting the campaigners.
The group said it’s also protesting against the Metropolitan Police’s U-turn on its policy to arrest people who show support for Palestine Action.
Palestine Action is a direct action group which says it wants to end British complicity in Israel’s mistreatment of Palestinians.
It has claimed responsibility for actions including a break-in at an RAF base, where aeroplanes were painted, and an attack on a London business that it said was linked to weapons manufacturers for Israel.
The UK government proscribed Palestine Action as a “terrorist organisation” in July 2025, placing it in the same category as armed groups including al-Qaeda and Hezbollah.
The proscription also makes it illegal to be a member of, or express support for, the group, offences punishable by up to 14 years in prison.
Eight activists linked to the network had staged hunger strikes while in prison on remand to protest against the government’s proscription of the group.
On February 13, the High Court ruled the government’s proscription of Palestine Action to be unlawful. It called the move “disproportionate” and in breach of freedom of expression.
Initially, Metropolitan Police indicated they were unlikely to arrest people showing support for the group following the High Court’s ruling.
But on March 25, police said they will resume arrests for those showing support. Critics say this U-turn defies the court ruling.
One of the Palestine Action hunger striker activists, Qesser Zuhrah, told Al Jazeera at the demonstration in London that the Met’s decision to resume arrests shows that the police “don’t serve us”.
“It just shows that the Met police, they don’t serve us, they don’t protect us, they work only to reinforce what the government wants,” she said.
Organisers said an estimated 1,500 people took part in the vigil.
The UK government’s appeal against the High Court ruling is scheduled to be heard by the Court of Appeal on April 28 and 29.