Home Secretary slams pro-Gaza marches as 'un-British'

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood speaking during a press conference at the scene near Heaton Park Hebrew Congregation synagogue in Crumpsall, Manchester (Peter Byrne/PA) Peter Byrne

Pro-Palestine marches which took place after a terror attack in Manchester were "dishonourable" and "fundamentally un-British", Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood has said. The demonstrations occurred in the wake of the attack, prompting strong criticism from the government.

Mahmood called for demonstrators to "step back" from plans to hold marches in coming days. She claimed this would show "some love and some solidarity" with Britain's Jewish community following the attack.

A central London demonstration held to protest the Israeli navy halting a flotilla carrying aid to Gaza erupted into clashes with police officers outside Downing Street on Thursday evening. Large crowds carrying Palestinian flags and placards could be seen on Whitehall into the evening.

Police arrests and response

The Metropolitan Police said 40 people had been arrested during the protest. Six of those arrested were charged with assaults on police officers.

"I was very disappointed to see those protests go ahead last night," Mahmood told Sky News. "I think that behaviour is fundamentally un-British. I think it's dishonourable."

The Home Secretary emphasised her desire for protesters to reconsider their timing. "I would have wanted those individuals to just take a step back," she said, adding that the issues driving the protests "have been going on now for some time" and "don't look like they're going to come to an end any day soon."

Planned demonstrations face police pressure

The Met has written to protest group Defend Our Juries, which plans to hold a march on Saturday, asking that it does not go ahead following the Crumpsall attack. The letter raised concerns about police resources being diverted at a time when "visible reassurance and protective security" is needed across London communities.

Defend Our Juries said it planned to proceed with the march despite police requests. The group, which has led demonstrations against the terrorist ban on Palestine Action, posted on social media: "Today, the Metropolitan Police wrote to us to ask that we postpone Saturday's mass protest in Trafalgar Square, citing 'significant pressure on policing'. Our response in short: Don't arrest us then."

Future march plans continue

Another march on October 11 by the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign is expected to end outside the gates of Downing Street. Mahmood reiterated her calls for protesters to reconsider their timing in multiple media interviews.

Speaking to GB News, she said: "As far as I am concerned, I would have wanted to see people in this country step back from protesting for at least a few days, just to give the Jewish community here a chance to process what has happened and to begin the grieving process as well."

The Home Secretary expressed particular disappointment that organisers had not heeded calls to postpone. Speaking to LBC, she added: "I don't think they do their cause any favours by behaving in this way. If the point of protest is to stand up for something and persuade other people that you are right, then I think this is entirely the wrong way to go about it, but that is on their conscience."

Sources used: "PA Media" Note: This article has been edited with the help of Artificial Intelligence.