A BAPTIST minister in Oxford is the latest person to be arrested for expressing support for the proscribed non-violent group Palestine Action.

James Grote held a cardboard sign reading “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action” in a lone protest outside New Road Baptist Church on Sunday.

Within just five minutes, he was arrested and whisked off to a police station, according to Defend Our Juries, which has been co-ordinating demonstrations against the group’s proscription.

Ahead of his silent demonstration, Mr Grote said: “I’m not a member of Palestine Action, but I support its work of disrupting anyone in the UK providing weapons for the war in Gaza.  

“Palestine Action [activists] have broken into buildings and caused damage to property, not people; this is not terrorism. The bombing of Gaza to dust is terrorism.  

“As a Christian and Baptist minister, I feel compelled to do this. We pray inside the church, but that is not enough. 

“I will sit down publicly outside the church I attend. I have to speak out, and I will not be silenced by our government.”

Mr Grote joins a growing list of religious leaders arrested since the ban took effect, including Catholic priest John McGowan, 75, of Buckinghamshire; Reverend Sue Parfitt, 83, of Bristol; and numerous Quakers.

A Defend Our Juries spokesperson said: “A protest group which targets property, not people, in order to disrupt the flow of arms to Israel’s war machine while it commits horrific atrocities, is clearly not a terrorist group. It aims to stop violence and terrorism being committed against the Palestinian people.

“If this unprecedented, authoritarian proscription is allowed to stand, there is a clear danger that it will be used against other groups the government of the day does not like – whether that be racial or climate justice groups, disability rights groups or trade unions.”

The group will hold a mass demonstration in Parliament Square in London on September 6, with the aim of getting at least 1,000 participants. 

Palestine Action frequently targeted and occupied Israeli-linked arms factories before being proscribed last month.

The government designated the group a terrorist organisation on July 5 after members entered RAF Brize Norton and sprayed red paint onto two refuelling planes.

Membership of or support for the group is now a criminal offence, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.