- Chief rabbi warns against extremism.
- Pro-Palestinian protests in London.
- Calls for ethical discernment.
The chief rabbi asserts that distinctions between protesters and “those who support the brutal terrorism of Hamas” have become “terribly muddled” in advance of the fourth weekend of demonstrations in London and throughout the United Kingdom.
Police disperse pro-Palestinian protesters
Police have removed a group of pro-Palestinian demonstrators from Trafalgar Square in London subsequent to the discharge of pyrotechnics in the direction of officers and into the crowds.
Eleven arrests during protests
Scotland Yard announced at 6:43 p.m. on Saturday that a dispersal order had been authorised and would remain in effect until 1 a.m. on Sunday.
Eleven arrests were reported by the Metropolitan Police during the fourth week of demonstrations in central London.
A armistice was demanded in Trafalgar Square by thousands of protesters engaged in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Police initially disclosed the particulars of three arrests earlier on Saturday, but subsequently revised the total to eleven.
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The Met stated that an individual was apprehended for “displaying a placard that could incite hatred.” They were detained in accordance with Terrorism Act section 12.
A third person was arrested for Public Order Act violations, while the first was arrested for police assault.
A sit-in protest was occurring at Charing Cross railway station, according to the British Transport Police, which added that officers were “actively engaging” with protestors.
“The protest has stopped some passengers from accessing the trains and platforms,” the announcement stated. For purposes of safety, the station is presently operational as an exit-only area.
BTP had previously stated that they were cognizant of “social media footage depicting chanting on a tube train.”
A 24-year-old man was subsequently apprehended on suspicion of committing a racially motivated offence.
Officers were also granted the authority to seize any item that was being utilised to obscure an individual’s identity.
Ethical discernment called for
The chief rabbi issues a dire warning regarding “hateful extremism.”
The chief rabbi of Britain issued a warning about “hateful extremism” prior to the rallies.
Sir Ephraim Mirvis considers the protesters-“those who support the brutal terrorism of Hamas” division “extremely muddled.”
In light of the Saturday afternoon demonstration in Trafalgar Square, the Metropolitan Police stated that social media and face recognition technology would be utilised “more intently” to identify criminal activity.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak called pro-Palestinian Armistice Day protests “provocative and disrespectful.”
Upcoming Armistice Day protests
Over tens of thousands of protesters are expected to march on November 11 to demand an end. However, organisers have assured that the Cenotaph war memorial, Whitehall, will not be a focal point of the demonstration.
Sir Ephraim believes Hamas’ October 7 attack in Israel caused the latest Gaza war. Thus, “jihad” and “intifada” slogans at recent protests empower militants.
“The world feels different because, just when it ought to be more clear than ever what is meant by Hamas’s ‘resistance,’ ‘jihad,’ ‘uprising,’ or ‘intifada,’ an increasing number of individuals in British and international cities are openly calling for these terms,” he wrote in The Times. This constitutes extreme hatred.
We must muster the moral fortitude to confront it head-on and call it by its name.
Sir Ephraim indicated a demonstration in Manchester wherein individuals exhibited a banner endorsing “Palestinian resistance” and asserted that the terminology employed was unequivocal.
He said, “Did each individual who participated in that march genuinely intend to associate themselves with behaviours of this abhorrent nature?” Sincerely, I pray they did not do so.
“However, it is indisputable that the distinction between individuals who merely seek to advocate for the well-being of innocent Palestinians and those who endorse the heinous terrorism of Hamas has become exceedingly indistinct.
Subsequent demonstrations have maintained the ambiguity of these boundaries, as a minority group has flaunted their extremism with pride on banners and in slogans, while the majority maintains a supportive stance.
“Similar distinctions have become indistinct in the sermons delivered in a minority of mosques; they incite hatred and even violence against Jews, while the majority of prominent Muslim clerics remain silent,” continued Sir Ephraim.
“They are muddled on university campuses, where the majority appears indifferent. While a minority of students and faculty members declare their support for ‘intifada’.”
It is critical that we immediately reestablish these boundaries of ethical discernment.
