LONDON: Defend Our Juries is staging nationwide demonstrations across 18 towns and cities in November, demanding that the UK government end the proscription of Palestine Action.
The group estimated that 1,500 participants will attend demonstrations in Edinburgh, Cardiff, Oxford, Leeds, Aberystwyth, Nottingham, Northampton, Gloucester, Truro, London, Belfast, Manchester, Birmingham, Cambridge, Bristol, Sheffield, Exeter, and Lancaster.
UK police have arrested over 2,000 individuals for allegedly supporting Palestine Action, which was banned in July. Some are currently in prison awaiting trial and plan to begin hunger strikes this Sunday.
Defend Our Juries noted varying police responses to the ban, with no arrests in Northern Ireland and 10 in Scotland. Many protesters were arrested for holding placards in public that read: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.”
Defend Our Juries spokesperson Dr. Clive Dolphin said: “This is about, here in the UK, people having the right to protest, the right to speak up to government when they think the government has got something wrong, and fundamentally this is about the fact that the British people oppose genocide.
“They do not want to be complicit in war crimes. They do not want to see people starved to death in an artificial famine. British people oppose genocide.”
Over two years of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which resulted in the deaths of over 65,000 people, numerous rallies across the UK have called for a ceasefire, an end to arms sales to Israel, and the recognition of Palestinian national rights.
Dolphin added that the large number of charges is causing “absolute chaos” in the magistrates’ court system.
Palestine Action was banned after an alleged attack on two planes at RAF Brize Norton in June, causing £7 million ($9.3 million) in damage, for which five members face vandalism charges. Moreover, 24 individuals are scheduled to stand trial for a break-in at the UK site of the Israel-based defense firm Elbit Systems in Bristol that occurred in August.
Some suspects linked to the alleged attacks will begin hunger strikes on Sunday.
Supporting Palestine Action is now a criminal offense punishable by up to 14 years in prison. Co-founder Huda Ammori is suing former Home Secretary Yvette Cooper for her decision to designate the group under anti-terror laws. A further court hearing is due to take place in late November.
