THE Metropolitan Police are threatening to put obstacles in the way of Saturday’s national protest in central London calling for a ceasefire in Gaza, organisers have said.
The action is part of ongoing weekly protests across Britain and the world for more than three months to call for an end to Israel’s “genocide” against Palestinians.
Hundreds of thousands have been attending the demonstrations despite continued attempts by police forces and the Home Office to criminalise the actions.
Tomorrow’s protest is the first since warnings by campaigners of genocide were vindicated by the decision of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that there is a plausible case that Israel was committing the act.
Organisers, which include Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) and Stop the War Coalition, said they informed the police on Monday that the protest would have two finishing stages — one in Trafalgar Square and the other in Whitehall.
The groups said in a statement: “Despite the fact that this arrangement has worked well on several of our previous marches, the police have so far not given permission.
“No reasonable rationale was given.”
They said that not having a second stage “risks serious overcrowding in Trafalgar Square and most protesters not reaching the endpoint of the demonstration, leading to heavy congestion in Regents Street and Piccadilly.”
“If we are not allowed access to Whitehall, it would also mean that days after the British government defied the ruling of the ICJ on Israeli genocide, people would not be able to protest outside Downing Street,” they added.
“We have written to the police urging them to reconsider, to agree to our request for a second stage and to accept that we have the right to march to the seat of government.”
PSC director Ben Jamal said that the policing of pro-Palestine demonstrations has been “increasingly repressive with wanton employment of Section 12 and Section 14 orders designed to intimidate and deter attendance.”
He said: “This includes an order threatening to arrest anyone who turned up before the advertised assembly time, massively impeding an operation which requires hundreds of stewards to arrive early.
“The police, in the midst of a Gaza genocide, are acting to prevent hundreds of thousands of people marching to the seat of government to protest [against] its complicity in greenlighting mass slaughter.
“We will be marching on Saturday. Join us.”
Labour MPs Richard Burgon and Zarah Sultana were among those calling on police forces to resolve the issue, with Mr Burgon adding: “The right to peacefully protest outside the seat of government is a long cherished one.”
A Met spokesperson said the force does not support the request to extend the march to Whitehall but that its teams continue to work with the organisers.
The spokesperson said: “We must balance the rights of protesters with the rights of others.
“The scale and frequency of marches is causing serious disruption to many Londoners.”
Groups supporting the marches, including the Black-Jewish Alliance and Jewish Socialists’ Group, have said they will still be marching tomorrow “against racism, fascism and war everywhere,” despite the restrictions.
Campaigners in Scotland will be holding their third national demonstration against the bombardment of Gaza in Edinburgh tomorrow, beginning at 1pm on Castlehill and marching to the Scottish Parliament.
Scottish PSC spokesman Mick Napier said: “Israel needs to act on last week’s order of the ICJ, which requires that it take measures to prevent further genocide and stop preventing aid from getting to the two million people of Gaza.
“The only way that is possible is with an immediate ceasefire, which is what we are calling for.
“While the Scottish Parliament has at least called for a ceasefire, the UK government, as usual, has been entirely complicit in Israel’s crimes.
“We need to increase the pressure on [Prime Minister Rishi] Sunak so that the UK stops facilitating the genocide.”
