June 23 (UPI) -- Britain's Met police banned a pro-Palestinian protest in front of the Houses of Parliament in central London scheduled to take place on Monday to "prevent serious public order," property damage and disruption to elected representatives.
Met Commissioner Mark Rowley said in a statement Sunday that while he could not stop the demonstration going ahead, he was using powers under public order legislation to impose an exclusion zone preventing protestors from assembling in a roughly 0.5 square mile area around the Palace of Westminster and restrict the duration to between noon and 3 p.m. local time.
The We Are All Palestine protest was being organized by Palestine Action but backed by around 35 other groups, including the Stop the War Coalition, Cage and Muslim Engagement and Development.
Calling Palestine Action "an extremist criminal group" with members awaiting trial on serious charges, Rowley said he was frustrated that he lacked legal authority to ban the protest outright.
"The right to protest is essential and we will always defend it, but actions in support of such a group go beyond what most would see as legitimate protest," he said.
