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London's Metropolitan Police announced on the 1st that more than 300 people were arrested during a protest in support of the pro-Palestinian group Palestine Action that took place in front of the American Embassy in London the previous day. The group is banned from operating in the UK.
Hundreds of people gathered in Nine Elms, south-west London, on October 31st. Many of the participants held placards that read, ``We are against genocide. We support Palestine Action.''
The following day, November 1, the Metropolitan Police announced that 325 people had been arrested in connection with the protests. It said on social media that 320 of them were suspected of "expressing support for organizations whose activities are prohibited under the Terrorism Act."
Palestine Action was declared a banned organization in the UK in July last year. At least 4,000 people have been arrested in connection with the group.
The ban will be appealed by the co-founder of Palestine Action and will be heard by the UK Supreme Court.
The Home Office is determined to fight back.
Police escorted protesters into police transport vehicles late into the evening of October 31st. Many protesters applauded those being taken away. Some chanted "Free, Free Palestine" (Liberate Palestine).
At one point, police carried protesters who refused to walk.
Among those taken away was Charles Allison, 75, a former lawyer. He had flown in from Cumbria in northwest England to take part in the protest. He said he was concerned that civil liberties were being "disrespected and watered down."
"I hope that the Supreme Court justices will not necessarily be influenced by this (protests), but they will take a long-term view of what's going on in this country and decide that banning the group is illegal, just as I believe it is illegal."
One protester, David Bolden, called the ban a "stupid law" before he was arrested.
Defend Our Juries, the group that has been coordinating the series of protests, said that including the arrests over the weekend, the total number of arrests since Palestine Action was declared a banned group has exceeded 4,000. It was a "truly dystopian" situation.
According to Home Office figures seen by the BBC, 3,630 people were arrested in the year to the end of June 2026. Adding the 134 people arrested earlier before Westminster Magistrates' Court and the 325 people arrested on October 31st, the total stands at 4,089.
The BBC has asked the Metropolitan Police to confirm the police statistics.
The British branch of international human rights organization Amnesty International criticized the series of arrests and called on the British government to lift the ban on Palestine Action.
Defend Our Juries said the arrest was "unjust" and an attack on freedom of expression.
(English article More than 300 arrests at Palestine Action support protest outside US embassy)
