Supporters Rally to Back Pro-Palestine Leaders Facing Charges
(MENAFN) On Monday, supporters rallied outside Westminster Magistrates’ Court to back two prominent pro-Palestine activists facing public order charges linked to a January demonstration. The protest highlighted widespread disapproval of government policies and the handling of pro-Palestine marches by law enforcement.
Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), and Chris Nineham, vice-chair of the Stop the War Coalition, appeared in court over allegations tied to a January 18 protest in central London that resulted in 77 arrests. Both men, aged 61 and 63 respectively, are accused of offences related to public order during that event.
During the hearing, the judge granted them unconditional bail and set their trial for February 23 next year at the same court.
Meanwhile, outside the courthouse, pro-Palestinian demonstrators waved flags and shouted chants in support of Jamal and Nineham. Signs reading "Stop political policing," "Just who wants to silence us?" and "Proscribe the UK gov't" were prominently displayed throughout the protest.
A small contingent of pro-Israeli supporters attempted to disrupt the rally but were contained by police officers, preventing any clashes.
Addressing the crowd, Nineham insisted that efforts to suppress the Palestine solidarity movement had "backfired." He stressed, "We cannot afford to be silenced. This is about Palestine."
Jamal remarked on the broader implications of their prosecution, stating, "all of us understand what is happening to Chris and myself as part of the broader repression of our movement."
He added, "(It is) a repression that has led to those people who have taken forms of direct action, non-violent direct action in the noble tradition of the suffragettes and the civil rights movement, being proscribed as terrorists."
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