Defend Our Juries, the pressure group behind the protests opposing the proscription of Palestine Action, said it believed a turnout of 1,000 would be enough to get the ban lifted.<\/p>\n
A total of 532 people were arrested at Saturday\u2019s demonstration, all but 10 under section 13 of the Terrorism Act for carrying placards saying: \u201cI oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.\u201d<\/p>\n
The number of people arrested for peaceful protests, their age profile \u2013 half of those arrested were 60 or older<\/a> \u2013 and the strain it is putting on the criminal justice system have led many to question the ban.<\/p>\n A Defend Our Juries spokesperson said: \u201cWith all the real challenges facing the country, it\u2019s crazy that the Labour government has generated a political crisis over people quietly holding cardboard signs against genocide in Parliament Square. This won\u2019t be forgotten.\u201d<\/p>\n After the weekend\u2019s arrests, Downing Street and Yvette Cooper<\/a>, the home secretary, said the protesters did not know about the group\u2019s violent tendencies. In response, Defend Our Juries and the Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori pointed to intelligence assessments released in Ammori\u2019s continuing legal battle fighting proscription that they said contradicted the claims.<\/p>\n The Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC), a government body based within MI5<\/a>, produced a report on 7 March that said the group \u201cprimarily uses direct action tactics\u201d, which typically resulted in minor damage to property. \u201cCommon tactics include graffiti, petty vandalism, occupation and lock-ons,\u201d it added.<\/p>\n A separate assessment by the Proscription Review Group (PRG) said a ban would be \u201crelatively novel\u201d as \u201cthere was no known precedent of an organisation being proscribed on the basis that it was concerned in terrorism mainly due to its use or threat of action involving serious damage to property\u201d. Nevertheless, the JTAC and PRG recommended proscription.<\/p>\n References to violence by Downing Street and Cooper are understood to refer to an allegation of assault against a single person associated with Palestine Action, which they deny and which relates to live proceedings so cannot be discussed fully because of the risk of contempt of court.<\/p>\n The Defend Our Juries spokesperson suggested that even if the allegation were proved, that would not make the whole organisation terrorist, adding: \u201cWhen the Labour MP Mike Amesbury assaulted his constituent<\/a>, no one suggested that that made the Labour party a terrorist organisation.\u201d<\/p>\n They continued: \u201cThe public response to our protests has been overwhelming. Despite (or because of) the legal risks, the government has turned an arrest for terrorism into a badge of honour for resistance to genocide. We have been inundated with offers of support from all quarters \u2026 The protest will go ahead as long as at least 1,000 people commit to taking part. That could well be enough for the ban to be lifted. If 5,000 people show up, we\u2019re certain the ban will be gone, and with it, most likely, Yvette Cooper.\u201d<\/p>\n![\"\u2018I\u2019m](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/08\/1755121092_202_1920.jpg\")
\u2018I\u2019m retired, and I\u2019m not scared\u2019: hundreds arrested at Palestine Action protest \u2013 video<\/p>\n