LONDON: UK police on Monday arrested two pro-Palestinian demonstrators after a protest at Britain’s Cenotaph war memorial in central London.
A Palestinian flag was laid in front of the Cenotaph and “180,000 killed” spray-painted on the ground in front of the monument, photos and video footage showed.
The Cenotaph is the focus every year of of national events to commemorate Britain’s war dead.
“Two women were quickly arrested on suspicion of criminal damage and are in custody,” the Metropolitan Police said on X, adding that damage was caused to the road and not to the monument itself.
In a statement, the Youth Demand group said its supporters had taken action to “commemorate the thousands killed in Israel’s genocidal assault on Gaza.”
It said Youth Demand was calling for a two-way arms embargo on Israel and for the new UK government to halt all new oil and gas licenses granted since 2021.
Supporters planned to disrupt the State Opening of Parliament by head of state King Charles III on Wednesday, it added.
Youth Demand last month staged a protest at the constituency home of former prime minister Rishi Sunak.
The war in Gaza was sparked by Hamas’s surprise October 7 attack on southern Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,195 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures.
The militants also seized 251 hostages, 116 of whom are still in Gaza including 42 the Israeli military says are dead.
Israel responded with a military offensive that has killed at least 38,584 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to data provided by the Gaza health ministry.
Pro-Palestinian activists held after protest at UK war memorial
https://arab.news/8qb9b
Pro-Palestinian activists held after protest at UK war memorial
- A Palestinian flag was laid in front of the Cenotaph and “180,000 killed” spray-painted on the ground in front of the monument
- The Cenotaph is the focus every year of of national events to commemorate Britain’s war dead
Two Turkish tourists killed in Ethiopia
- Southwestern Ethiopia is home to semi-nomadic herders, notably from the Suri and Surma tribes, who are often armed to defend their herds
ADDIS ABABA: Two Turkish tourists and their Ethiopian driver have been killed by armed herders in southwestern Ethiopia, regional authorities said late on Monday, describing the attack as a “heinous act.”
The attack took place in the Suri district, about 330 km southwest of the capital Addis Ababa, and was carried out by “pastoralist bandits” on Monday morning, authorities in the Southwest region said on Facebook.
They did not give further details of the circumstances.
Southwestern Ethiopia is home to semi-nomadic herders, notably from the Suri and Surma tribes, who are often armed to defend their herds.
Regional authorities said they were conducting a “major law enforcement operation” to “pursue and bring to justice the bandits who committed this heinous act.”
Ethiopia, which emerged in 2022 from a bloody civil war in the northern Tigray region, is seeking to attract international tourists as it looks to diversify its largely state-led economy.
The Horn of Africa nation — the second most populous on the continent with around 130 million people — continues to face armed conflicts in its two most populous regions, Oromia and Amhara.
