Huda Ammori says No 10’s allegations go against its own intelligence assessments, as pressure grows over mass arrests
The co-founder of Palestine Action has accused ministers of making false and defamatory allegations about the banned group, and of contradicting their own intelligence assessments in an attempt to justify recent mass arrests.
The government has come under pressure to justify the detention of 532 people arrested over the weekend under the Terrorism Act – half of whom were 60 or older – on suspicion of showing support for Palestine Action.
The number of people arrested for peaceful protests, together with the images of older people being led away and the demands placed on the criminal justice system, have led many to call into question the criminalisation of so many people.
On Monday, a Downing Street spokesperson responded by saying Palestine Action, which last month became the first direct action protest group to be banned, was “a violent organisation that has committed violence, significant injury, extensive criminal damage”.
