LONDON: Seventy-nine people are dead or missing and presumed dead following a devastating blaze in a London tower block last week, police said on Monday, as Britain held a minute’s silence for the victims.
“As of this morning, I’m afraid to say there are now 79 people that we believe are either dead or missing and I sadly have to presume are dead,” police commander Stuart Cundy told reporters.
Police had earlier put the toll at 58 presumed dead.
He said only five people had been formally identified so far by police, after officers earlier warned that some may never be identified due to the condition of the remains.
Cundy said the search and recovery operation was ongoing in the burnt-out 24-story tower.
“This is an incredible distressing time for families and they have my commitment that we will do this as quickly as we possibly can,” he said.
Cundy promised an “exhaustive” criminal investigation into the fire that would also look at a major refurbishment of the building completed last year.
“We will go where the evidence may take us,” and do everything possible “to ensure that those responsible will be brought to justice,” he said.
“If I identify... an issue that is a risk to public safety, we will be sharing that immediately with the relevant authorities,” he added.
Cundy warned that the toll of 79 people could change.
“I believe there may be people who were in Grenfell Tower that people may not know were missing and may not have realized they were in there on the night.
“Equally, there may be people who thankfully may have managed to escape the fire and for whatever reason have not let their family or friends or police know,” he said.
79 people presumed dead in London tower block fire: police
79 people presumed dead in London tower block fire: police
UK granted permission to appeal ruling that Palestine Action ban was unlawful
- London’s High Court ruled this month that the ban was unlawful
- The same court on Wednesday granted Britain’s Home Office interior ministry permission to challenge its ruling
LONDON: The British government was on Wednesday given permission to appeal against a ruling that its ban on pro-Palestinian campaign group Palestine Action as a terrorist organization was unlawful.
Palestine Action was proscribed in July, having increasingly taken “direct action” against Israel-linked defense companies in Britain, often blocking entrances or spraying red paint.
Palestine Action was banned shortly after a June break-in at the Royal Air Force’s Brize Norton air base, in which activists damaged two planes, an action described by Prime Minister Keir Starmer as “disgraceful.”
Lawyers representing Huda Ammori, who co-founded Palestine Action in 2020, argued at a hearing last year that the move was an authoritarian restriction on the right to protest.
London’s High Court ruled this month that the ban was unlawful, ruling that it was a disproportionate interference with free speech rights.
The same court on Wednesday granted Britain’s Home Office interior ministry permission to challenge its ruling, saying the ban would remain in place pending the appeal.
The Home Office said it was pleased it could appeal.
“We will always take the strongest possible action to protect our national security and our priority remains maintaining the safety and security of our citizens,” a spokesperson said in a statement.
The ruling earlier this month threw into question the prosecution of hundreds of people who had been charged for holding signs in support of the group, and prompted London’s Metropolitan Police to say it would focus on gathering evidence rather than making arrests.
