Eleven arrested during pro-Palestinian demonstrations in London

Eleven people were arrested during pro-Palestinian demonstrations across London on Wednesday, 7 October, according to the Metropolitan Police. Five were arrested outside the north London office of the Board of Deputies of British Jews on suspicion of inciting racial hatred. They remained in custody at the time of the BBC’s report. [1]

Police said slogans calling for “intifada” were chanted outside the office. Jewish groups have described the term as a call for violence against Jewish people; pro-Palestinian groups have described it as a call for peaceful resistance to Israel’s occupation. Neither description establishes what any individual protester intended. [1]

Five other people were arrested for breaching conditions imposed on a march, including one person taking part in a counter-protest. A further person on the pro-Palestinian march was arrested on suspicion of common assault. About 100 people marched from Lincoln’s Inn Fields to Russell Square, where counter-demonstrators carrying Israeli flags also gathered. The BBC reported minor scuffles between the groups. [1]