UK Expands Police Powers to Restrict Protests Following Community Safety Concerns

The government has announced that police will be authorized to consider the "cumulative impact" of protests when making decisions.

United Kingdom:

UK authorities are expanding police powers to restrict protests after a government minister stated that repeated large-scale pro-Palestinian demonstrations have generated "considerable fear" among the Jewish community.

This governmental initiative follows a deadly knife and car-ramming attack targeting a synagogue in Manchester's northwestern area on Thursday.

Despite urgent requests from Prime Minister Keir Starmer and the Metropolitan Police to postpone, a pro-Palestinian demonstration proceeded in central London on Saturday.

According to the government announcement, police will now be permitted to evaluate the "cumulative impact" of protests when imposing limitations on demonstrators.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood stated, "The right to protest is a fundamental freedom in our country. However, this freedom must be balanced with the freedom of their neighbours to live their lives without fear."

More than 1,000 individuals participated in Saturday's London protest at Trafalgar Square, resulting in nearly 500 arrests for showing support for the banned Palestine Action campaign group.

Event organizers rejected requests to cancel, stating they "stood in solidarity" with the Jewish community regarding the Manchester attack, but maintained that "cancelling peaceful protests lets terror win".

The previous day, Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy faced booing at a vigil honoring the Jewish victims of the synagogue attack.

Mahmood emphasized, "Large, repeated protests can leave sections of our country, particularly religious communities, feeling unsafe, intimidated and scared to leave their homes."

She added, "This has been particularly evident in relation to the considerable fear within the Jewish community."

When questioned by a BBC interviewer about the Jewish community's repeated warnings regarding dangers they face, Mahmood acknowledged being "very worried about the state of community relations in our country".

Speaking to Times Radio, the Home Secretary further noted a broader "problem of a rise not only in antisemitism but in other forms of hatred as well".

"There are clearly malign and dark forces running amok across our country," she stated.

Police fatally shot the attacker, Jihad Al-Shamie, a 35-year-old UK citizen of Syrian descent, within minutes after the alarm was raised on Thursday.

One person died in the attack outside the north Manchester synagogue. Another victim died from a fatal gunshot, which police believe was fired by armed officers while confronting Shamie.

Three seriously injured people remain hospitalized, including one believed to have been accidentally struck by police fire.

Counter-terrorism police have received additional time to detain four individuals arrested on suspicion of terrorism-related offenses connected to the incident.

The UK has experienced ongoing pro-Palestinian demonstrations since the deadly Hamas attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023, and Israel's retaliatory actions in Gaza, which have resulted in tens of thousands of deaths.