Ex-Guantanamo detainee, suspected al-Qaeda member among 460+ arrested at UK Palestine Action event - Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

 

by Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

Officers made arrests after crowds, waving placards expressing support for the group, gathered in Parliament Square, the force said on X.

 

Supporters of pro-Palestinian campaign organisation Palestine Action demonstrate outside London's High Court in London, Britain, July 4, 2025.

(photo credit: REUTERS/CARLOS JASSO)

 

Former Guantanamo Bay detainee Moazzam Begg was arrested on Saturday for supporting banned group Palestine Action, The Telegraph reported. While Begg was released without charge in 2005, the US held him for five years, alleging he was a member of  al-Qaeda.

Begg was arrested again in 2014 and accused of involvement in terrorist activities linked to the conflict in Syria. The charges were later dropped. 

More than 460 people protesting against Britain's decision to ban the Palestine Action group were arrested outside parliament on Saturday, London's Metropolitan Police said.

Officers made arrests after crowds, waving placards expressing support for the group, gathered in Parliament Square, the force said on X.

In a post on X, the police force said it had arrested 460 people for supporting a proscribed organisation.

It also arrested seven people for other offences including five for assaults on officers, adding none was seriously injured.

The ban on Palestine Action

In July, British lawmakers banned Palestine Action under anti-terrorism legislation after some of its members broke into a Royal Air Force base and damaged planes in protest against Britain's support for Israel.

The ban makes it a crime to be a member of the group, carrying a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.

A demonstrator holds a placard, outside London's High Court as judges decide whether the co-founder of Palestine Action can challenge the UK government's ban on the group, in London, Britain, July 30, 2025. (credit: REUTERS/TOBY MELVILLE)

The co-founder of Palestine Action, Huda Ammori, last week won a bid to bring a legal challenge against the ban.

The Telegraph reported that the crowds tried to overwhelm police.

Over 200 protesters have been arrested during marches by Defend Our Juries since the Palestine Action ban came into force last month following an attack on an RAF base.

Reuters, Jerusalem Post Staff

Source: https://www.jpost.com/international/islamic-terrorism/article-863715

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