Amnesty UK condemns mass arrests of Palestine Action protesters

In response to the mass arrests of Palestine Action protesters in Parliament Square, Amnesty International UK’s Chief Executive, Sacha Deshmukh, expressed deep concern.

He said, “Today’s mass arrests of peaceful protesters under UK terrorism law are deeply concerning.

“Peaceful protest is a fundamental right. People are understandably outraged by the ongoing genocide being committed in Gaza and are entitled under international human rights law to express their horror.

“The protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists.

“We have long criticised UK terrorism law for being excessively broad and vaguely worded and a threat to freedom of expression. These arrests demonstrate that our concerns were justified.

“Instead of criminalising peaceful demonstrators, the Government should be focusing on taking immediate and unequivocal action to put a stop to Israel’s genocide and ending any risk of UK complicity in it.”