Peter Oborne exposes BBC and pro-Israel lobby
Jewish activists risk arrest as UK cracks down on pro-Palestine protests
The UK government is enacting an unprecedented crackdown on protest. Since October 2023, pro-Palestinian activists have faced police raids, increased surveillance and pre-emptive arrests. In July, the government went further, banning the direct-action group Palestine Action and making public support for it a terrorism offence. Additional protest restrictions were announced after a deadly attack on a synagogue in Manchester. Prime Minister Keir Starmer has signalled the government may go beyond the measures already outlined, including giving police powers to target specific chants at demonstrations.
Amid this crackdown, a group of Jewish activists are taking a stand. Many are over 50; one is a retired army colonel; several are descendants of Holocaust survivors. They are now risking arrest for holding signs in Parliament Square that read: “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action”. Middle East Eye spoke to these activists as they challenge the ban and resist what they see as a wider attack on the right to protest. Far from fitting the profile of terrorism suspects, their backgrounds are what compel them to put themselves on the frontline.
British pro-Palestinian political commentator Sami Hamdi landed back in London on Thursday (November 13) after being released from the United States, where he spent more than two weeks in immigration detention. Hamdi was detained on October 26 at San Francisco International Airport after U.S. officials revoked his visa during a speaking tour in which he criticized Israel's actions in Gaza.
"It's wonderful to be back after being exonerated by two federal judges, both of whom found that there were serious breaches of freedom of speech," Hamdi told reporters after landing at London's Heathrow Airport, where he was embraced by his family.
He said the only allegation against him was overstaying his visa after it was revoked without warning. He insisted he had complied with all visa conditions and alleged the move was linked to his advocacy for Gaza. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement said Hamdi's visa was canceled under security rules and that he was in the country illegally.
Rights groups and press freedom advocates condemned the detention, calling it an attack on free speech. Hamdi, managing director of The International Interest, a political risk consultancy, and a frequent analyst on British television, had spoken at a gala for the Council on American-Islamic Relations in California and was scheduled to appear at another event in Florida before his arrest. The Trump administration has pursued a sweeping immigration crackdown this year, including revoking visas for people accused of supporting terrorism and deporting foreign nationals who have voiced support for Palestinians.
