Five people have been arrested over a banner hung from Westminster Bridge in support of the banned group Palestine Action.
The individuals, aged between fifty and seventy-five, were arrested on the bridge on suspicion of encouraging support for a proscribed organisation contrary to Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000.
Palestine Action was banned as a terror organisation in July after the group claimed responsibility for an action in which two Voyager planes were damaged at RAF Brize Norton the previous month.
The banner reads: ‘We support the hunger strikers. We support Palestine Action’.
Earlier this month, Prisoners for Palestine said an undisclosed number of inmates will begin an open-ended hunger strike in protest at being held in prison while awaiting trial.
The group are calling for the prisoner’s immediate bail, lifting the ban on Palestine Action and an end to censorship of their communications.
The prisoners were not named but they are among the Filton 24 accused of aggravated burglary, criminal damage and violent disorder during action at Elbit Systems last year, and the so-called Brize Norton Five.
The first six of the Filton 24 are set to begin their trial on Monday after over a year held in remand, while the five on remand in relation to incident at RAF Brize Norton aren’t due to stand trial until January 2027.
The individuals, aged between fifty and seventy-five, were arrested on the bridge on suspicion of encouraging support for a proscribed organisation contrary to Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000
The five people were arrested on Westminster Bridge and remain in police custody while enquiries continue
Palestine Action was banned as a terror organisation in July after the group claimed responsibility for an action in which two Voyager planes were damaged at RAF Brize Norton the previous month
A spokesperson from Prisoners for Palestine said: ‘Today’s banner drop echoes the sentiment of people across this country, who are disgusted by the proscription of Palestine Action and the ongoing imprisonment of protestors who oppose genocide.
‘There are six prisoners for Palestine who are engaging in an open ended hunger strike, left with no other option but to use their bodies as a tool to resist injustice.
‘Each of the prisoners face up to two years on remand without trial, far exceeding the six month pre-trial custody time limit.
‘They’ve also faced harsher treatment due to the weaponising of counter-terrorism powers against them.
‘Now, they’ve entered their 14th day of hunger strike and people across the country are mobilising in support of them.’
A Met spokesperson said: ‘Officers have arrested five people following an incident on Westminster Bridge on Saturday, November 15.
‘The individuals, aged between fifty and seventy-five, were arrested on suspicion of encouraging support for a proscribed organisation, contrary to Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000.
‘They remain in police custody while enquiries continue.’
It comes as pro-Gaza supporters are set the launch a week of mass action across the UK.
Defend Our Juries announced dozens of actions in November in protest against Labour’s ban on Palestine Action.
The Lift The Ban campaign is set to run from November 18th to 29th, with the group describing it as the ‘most widespread mass civil disobedience across the UK in modern British history’.
People stage a protest to demand the British government to lift its ban on Palestine Action in Trafalgar Square on on October 4, 2025
People take part in a demonstration organised by GM Friends of Palestine at Manchester Cathedral on October 4, 2025
The group say that more than 2000 people have been arrested for holding signs as part of the Lift The Ban campaign.
Leigh Evans, who took part in the Global Flotilla and who will be taking action in Cardiff said: ‘Protest and direct action are prerequisites for democracy in the face of fascism.
‘Direct action is the only thing that has ever been proved to work against oppression and apartheid.’
Elle Miller, from Glasgow, who will be taking part in actions both Edinburgh and London, said: ‘Without protest, slavery would still be legal, women couldn’t vote, and same-sex marriage would still be illegal.
‘We know protest works precisely because successive governments are trying to criminalise it.
‘If sitting peacefully with a cardboard sign makes me a terrorist, then I hope my great-grandchildren will be as proud of me as relatives of the suffragettes are today.
Oliver Baines OBE, who will be among those holding signs in Truro, said: ‘Our argument was never with the police but with the UK Government, with its shameful attack on our civil liberties, and with its appalling record of complicity in the ongoing genocide in Gaza and the West Bank.
‘Equating solidarity with Palestine and opposition to genocide with being a terrorist is a gross insult to all peace-loving people.’
A statement from Defend Our Juries said: ‘It is vital that our campaign succeeds – not just for Palestine Action but for democracy.
‘Once the meaning of ‘terrorism’ is separated from campaigns of violence against a civilian population, and extended to include those causing economic damage or embarrassment to the rich, the powerful and the criminal, then the right to freedom of expression has no meaning and democracy is dead.
‘If we let this go, the unions, and climate and racial justice movements will be next.
‘But the Government has overreached itself.
‘Our groups and movements are coming together like never before, finding unity under repression.
‘By refusing to give into fear and by standing together, we will face down this assault on us all.’
The Dailly Mail has approached the Home Office for comment.
