Police arrest nearly 500 people at protest over Palestine Action ban

A total of 474 people have been arrested

They said that 466 people were arrested for supporting the group, five for aggravated assaults on police, two for public order offences and one for a racially aggravated offence.

The Met Police said it was their biggest single day of arrests in the last 10 years.

Police said those who were arrested whose details could be confirmed were bailed with conditions to not attend anymore protests supporting Palestine Action. Those who refused to give their details were taken into custody.

Hundreds of people gathered in London's Parliament Square for the demonstration, which was organised by Defend Our Juries.

Crowds simultaneously revealed signs that read "I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action".

Defend Our Juries said earlier this week that the protests would go ahead despite the ban.

The group said that among those arrested were a blind wheelchair user, NHS workers and former Guantanamo Bay detainee Moazzam Begg.

Palestine Action was designated a proscribed group last month, meaning it is a criminal offence to show support for the organisation.

The ban on Palestine Action means that anyone who is a member of, or shows support for, the group can face up to 14 years in prison, under the Terrorism Act 2000.

The High Court ruled at the end of July that Palestine Action would be able to challenge its proscription.

Yesterday's protest was the largest to be held since the government proscribed the group.

Home Secretary Yvette Cooper thanked Met Police for their response to the protests, while Amnesty International said the mass arrests were "deeply concerning".

Sacha Deshmukh, the chief of Amnesty International UK, said: "The protesters in Parliament Square were not inciting violence and it is entirely disproportionate to the point of absurdity to be treating them as terrorists.

"Instead of criminalising peaceful demonstrators, the government should be focusing on taking immediate and unequivocal action to put a stop to Israel's genocide and ending any risk of UK complicity in it."