Sunak clashes with police chief over planned pro-Palestinian march
A pro-Palestinian demonstration planned for Saturday in London has become embroiled in a tense political debate that has put Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at odds with Britain’s top police official over whether the event should take place at all.
Tens of thousands of people have marched in London over the past four Saturdays to denounce the rising number of civilian casualties in Gaza as Israel bombed the area in response to Hamas terror attacks last month.
Another march is planned for this Saturday, but November 11 is also Armistice Day, the day on which the British commemorate the end of the First World War. Mr Sunak described the combination of the protest with some commemorative events as ‘provocative and disrespectful’ and has called for the pro-Palestinian protest to be banned.
Under British law, police can apply for a ban on marching if there is a risk of serious public disorder, but the last time this power was used was more than a decade ago for a series of far-right marches.
Although the Metropolitan Police Service asked march organizers earlier this week to postpone the demonstration, the leadership has so far resisted calls for a ban.
“The laws made by parliament are clear,” said Mark Rowley, head of London’s Metropolitan Police Service rack on Tuesday evening. “There is no absolute power to ban protest, which is why there will be a protest this weekend.”
Mr Rowley added that while he recognized “significant public and political concern” about how the protest would affect a “moment of national reflection”, he was determined to ensure the march went off without disruption.
“The reason we have an independent police service is that between debate, opinion, emotion and conflict, we are at the center, simply focused on the law and the facts before us,” he said.
Mr Sunak, in a letter to Mr Rowley had said late last week that “there is a clear and present risk that the Cenotaph and other war memorials could be desecrated”, although the march’s organizers said they had no plans to march near the Cenotaph or Whitehall, where the commemorative events will take place.
Speaking on Wednesday, Mr Sunak said Mr Rowley would be held accountable for his decisions.
“He has said that he can ensure that we can secure the commemoration for the country this weekend and that we can guarantee the safety of the public,” he said. Sky News. “It is now my job to hold him accountable for that.” The two men were scheduled to meet Wednesday to discuss the event.
The vast majority of people who attended previous Saturday demonstrations were peaceful. But there have been some fringe elements, police say, and since the Hamas attack on October 7, more than 160 people have been arrested in London for a range of crimes, including racially motivated public offences, violence and assaulting police officers.