Four arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences during London protests over the weekend

15 January 2024, 17:41 | Updated: 15 January 2024, 17:49

Four people have been arrested on suspicion of terrorism offences after protests held over the weekend.

Two men, aged 58 and 34, and one woman, 36, were arrested on suspicion of inviting support for a proscribed organisation during a pro-Palestine protest on Saturday. They were arrested at around 4pm at Victoria Embankment.

A fourth man, 49, who had been taking part in a protest against the counter-terrorism arrests outside a west London police station, was also arrested at around 3pm on Sunday.

Demonstrators had been taking part in a rally in support of Israel on Sunday.

Police searched the addresses of those who were arrested.

Commander Dominic Murphy, head of the Met Counter Terrorism Command, said: “The vast majority of people attending protests are doing so peacefully.

“There are consequences for those who are not and where officers see people supporting proscribed organisations we will take action, as we did this weekend.”

A Met spokesman said on Monday: "All four people have been bailed to return to a west London police station in late March," said a Met Police spokesperson on Monday.

"Police have completed searches of four addresses in south-east Kent, South Yorkshire, west London and south London."

It comes after Foreign Secretary James Cleverly declared that Hizb ut-Tahrir, one of the organisers of the pro-Palestine protests, are a terrorist group on Monday.

Read more: MPs to vote on Palestine protest organisers Hizb ut-Tahrir being declared terrorists after call for 'jihad'

Read more: One killed and 17 injured in double terror attack after car-ramming and mass stabbing near Tel Aviv

The Home Secretary has laid a draft order before Parliament to designate the Islamic political party as terrorists.

Hizb ut-Tahrir has been among the organisers of the huge pro-Palestine protests that have taken place in central London on many Saturdays since the war between Israel and Hamas began. It is not one of the major coalition of groups that have organised protests backing Palestine.

If the MPs' vote passes on Friday it will be a criminal offence to belong to, invite support for and publicly display material in a public place in a way that arouses suspicion of membership or support for the group. Some offences could be punishable by 14 years in prison.

The UK threat level currently remains at substantial, meaning an attack is likely.

The arrests come after thousands of people participated in a pro-Palestine march in London over the weekend, calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.

The protest was held as part of a global day of action which saw 30 countries participate.

More than 1,700 police officers were on duty throughout the demonstration.

It was the seventh pro-Palestinian march held in London following attacks from Hamas on southern Israel on October 7.

The protest began in the Bank area of central London and ended in Parliament Square in Westminster.

The protest was followed by a rally in support of Israel in Trafalgar Square on Sunday.