UK police arrest 139 in Palestine Action crackdown in London

British police have arrested 139 people during a demonstration against the country’s ban on Palestine Action outside the US Embassy in London, days before the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear an appeal challenging the group’s proscription.

On Saturday, hundreds of demonstrators gathered in Battersea, south London, carrying placards reading, “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action,” according to The Guardian. A separate solidarity vigil was held outside the US Consulate in Edinburgh.

The Metropolitan Police had warned participants that expressing support for Palestine Action, which is proscribed under British “terrorism legislation,” could lead to arrest. The police had also warned that organizers and those providing logistical assistance or directing participants could face criminal charges.

Following the arrests, the force said in a statement on X, “Officers remain on scene and are continuing to make arrests.”

Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the crackdown, tried to defend the arrests, saying, “All those intending on coming to this event know that supporting a proscribed organization is unlawful – they are essentially meeting to purposefully commit a crime,” according to the paper.

The Defend Our Juries activist group, which had organized the demonstration, estimated that around 400 people participated and denounced the police for being “terrified of facilitating US embarrassment.”

It was apparently referring to the demonstrators’ condemnation of the United States’ outright contribution to the Israeli regime’s genocidal war on Gaza, and the police’s prompt action aimed at stifling the protest.

More than 4,000 arrests since ban

Palestine Action was designated a “terrorist organization” in July 2025, making certain expressions of support for the group “criminal offenses” under British law.

Defend Our Juries says more than 4,000 people have been arrested for supporting the organization since the ban took effect, accounting for the overwhelming majority of “terrorism-related” arrests in Britain during that period.

Saturday’s protest followed a demonstration outside the Labour Party conference in Liverpool last month, during which more than 160 people were arrested or reported for summons.

Condemning Saturday’s police enforcement, a Defend Our Juries spokesperson said, “The Met police overzealous response outside the US Embassy today only serves to further expose how far authorities in the UK will go to appease American interests.”

“Israel’s war crimes that have caused death and injury to thousands could not happen without the US’s approval,” the spokesperson added.

Supreme Court hearing approaches

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear an appeal challenging Palestine Action’s proscription on November 4. The ban was introduced under former prime minister Keir Starmer, and the continuing arrests have intensified pressure on successor Andy Burnham’s government to reconsider it.

The controversy has also affected Irish novelist Sally Rooney, who announced earlier this month that her books could no longer be supplied to British retailers because her publisher could not legally transfer royalties that might be used to support the organization.