Pro-Palestinian demonstrations labeled 'un-British' in the wake of Manchester terror incident, UK interior minister asserts

Media Agency

The Home Secretary conveyed regret that Palestinian-supporting demonstrations proceeded on Thursday after the terrorist incident that took the lives of two men outside a Jewish place of worship in Manchester.

Britain's home secretary also called on protesters to "pause" from intentions to stage marches in the coming days.

"I believe that carrying on in this fashion appears un-British, it feels wrong," she stated concerning protests scheduled for this week.

Demonstrators in central London demonstrating against the Israeli navy stopping a aid convoy carrying aid to the Gaza Strip had confrontations with police officers outside the Prime Minister's residence on Thursday evening.

Numerous people carrying Palestinian flags and signs could be seen on the government district throughout the night.

The Metropolitan Police stated that 40 people had been detained. A half-dozen of those apprehended were arrested for assaults on police officers.

"It's essential to make a distinction between events unfolding in the Middle East and situations developing at home," the home secretary told a breakfast show on Friday.

"I would say to individuals who are planning to join a demonstration is to reconsider briefly for a short while, and imagine if you had lost a close relative to a terror attack in this nation," she added.

There were "robust" authorities to safeguard the freedom to protest, she mentioned, but they could be superseded on the advice of the law enforcement.

"I can follow guidance from the police, if they were to tell me there was an inability to respond and to police the demonstrations, then there are legal measures that are at my disposal," she clarified.

Community representatives express worries

The UK's Chief Rabbi commented that many people of the Jewish community asked why marches in support of Palestinian causes had been permitted to take place.

The movement was banned as a terrorist organisation in the summer. At multiple demonstrations after that, numerous individuals have been arrested for expressing solidarity for the group, which has secured permission to dispute the proscription.

"A portion of them contain outright antisemitism, outright support for Hamas. Not all participants, however there is a significant amount of these elements, which undoubtedly represents dangerous to many within our community," the chief rabbi remarked.

"You cannot separate the words on our public spaces, the actions of individuals in this way, and what inevitably results, which was the recent violent act."

He also called on the government "yet again", to "assert authority on these demonstrations, they are harmful."