LONDON: An anti-war protester was arrested in the Scottish city of Glasgow on Friday for showing support for a pro-Palestinian group that was recently banned in the UK.
The 64-year-old man was accused of holding a poster during a demonstration that allegedly displayed support for Palestine Action, local media reported.
The group was proscribed this month under the UK’s Terrorism Act 2000, after Palestine Action activists sprayed paint on two military aircraft after breaking into a Royal Air Force base on June 20. It means that membership or support for the group is now a criminal offense.
The ban came into force on July 5 and since then dozens of people have been arrested across the UK for showing support for the group.
Police Scotland said the man in Glasgow was arrested “in connection with an offense under the Terrorism Act for displaying a sign expressing support for a proscribed organization.”
Protesters chanted “let him go” as he was led away to a police van, The Herald newspaper reported. His arrest follows two others in the city in recent days involving people accused of showing support for the group.
More than 70 people were arrested in cities across the UK last weekend during protests against the banning of Palestine Action.
After MPs voted in favor of proscribing the group, Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said it had a “long history” of criminal damage.
“The UK’s defense enterprise is vital to the nation’s national security and this government will not tolerate those that put that security at risk,” she added.
However, the ban was widely criticized by UN experts and human rights groups as draconian and for conflating protest with acts of terrorism.
Hundreds of politicians and campaigners signed a letter this week condemning the decision as “a major assault on our freedoms.”
