LONDON: Police in London said that five people had been charged on Sunday after their arrest during pro-Palestinian protests a day earlier, which saw tens of thousands march for a humanitarian cease-fire in Gaza.
The Metropolitan Police arrested nine people — two on suspicion of assaulting police officers and seven for public order offenses.
A further two people were arrested on Sunday morning, suspected of inciting racial hatred following an incident in Trafalgar Square on Saturday evening, the Met said in a statement.
Among the five charged, aged between 16 and 51, two were accused of racially aggravated offenses, including the display of a placard that was “threatening and racist in nature.”
The others were accused of throwing a beer can at a protester and verbal and physical assaults on police officers.
About 100,000 people joined the “March for Palestine” in London on Saturday according to British media, which also reported scuffles with police.
It was the third consecutive weekend that London hosted a large rally in support of Palestinians.
Organizers claimed that 500,000 people took part this Saturday, compared with 300,000 a week ago.
London’s Metropolitan Police deployed more than 1,000 officers to patrol the march.
On Sunday afternoon, around 200 people holding portraits of hostages taken by Hamas gathered outside the Qatari embassy in London to call for their release, according to an AFP photographer.
Hamas militants stormed across the Gaza border on October 7 in the deadliest attack in Israel’s history, killing 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping 230 others, according to Israeli officials.
The health ministry in Gaza says the retaliatory Israeli bombardment has killed more than 8,000 people, mainly civilians and half of them children.
The conflict has led to a sharp rise in racist incidents in the UK.
Anti-Semitic acts in London have multiplied about 14-fold, and Islamophobic acts by almost three, Scotland Yard chief Mark Rowley told Sky News on Sunday.
Five charged after pro-Palestinian protests in London
https://arab.news/yrr52
Five charged after pro-Palestinian protests in London
- The Metropolitan Police arrested nine people — two on suspicion of assaulting police officers and seven for public order offenses
- A further two people were arrested on Sunday morning, suspected of inciting racial hatred following an incident in Trafalgar Square on Saturday evening
Italian PM pledges to deepen cooperation with African states
- The plan, launched in 2024, aims to promote investment-led cooperation rather than traditional aid
ADDIS ABABA: Italy pledged to deepen cooperation with African countries at its second Italy-Africa summit, the first held on African soil, to review projects launched in critical sectors such as energy and infrastructure during Italy’s first phase of the Mattei Plan for Africa.
The plan, launched in 2024, aims to promote investment-led cooperation rather than traditional aid.
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addressed dozens of African heads of state and governments in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, and reiterated that a successful partnership would depend on Italy’s “ability to draw from African wisdom” and ensure lessons are learned.
“We want to build things together,” she told African heads of state. “We want to be more consistent with the needs of the countries involved.”
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Italy had provided Africa with a gateway to Europe through these partnerships.
“This is a moment to move from dialogue to action,” he said.
“By combining Africa’s energetic and creative population with Europe’s experience, technology, and capital, we can build solutions that deliver prosperity to our continents and beyond.”
After the Italy-Africa summit concluded, African leaders remained in Addis Ababa for the annual African Union Summit.
Kenyan writer and political analyst Nanjala Nyabola said tangible results from such summits depend on preparations made by countries.
African governments often focus on “optics instead of actually making summits a meaningful engagement,” she said.
Instead of waiting for a list of demands, countries should “present the conclusions of an extended period of mapping the national needs” and engage in dialogue to determine how those needs can be met.
Since it was launched two years ago, the Mattei Plan has directly involved 14 African nations and has launched or advanced around 100 projects in crucial sectors, including energy and climate transition, agriculture and food security, physical and digital infrastructure, healthcare, water, culture and education, training, and the development of artificial intelligence, according to the Italian government.
