British police forces to make arrests over 'globalise the intifada' chants
The Metropolitan and Greater Manchester police forces have announced they will arrest people for chanting "globalise the intifada" or holding placards displaying the phrase.
They said on Wednesday: "Violent acts have taken place, the context has changed - words have meaning and consequence. We will act decisively and make arrests."
The announcement comes days after the devastating massacre that killed at least 15 people and wounded 40 on Bondi Beach in Australia. The attack is widely considered as antisemitic as it targeted Jewish people celebrating the first night of Hanukkah.
The two police forces said: "We know communities are concerned about placards and chants such as 'globalise the intifada' and those using it at future protests or in a targeted way should expect" the two forces "to take action".
"Frontline officers will be briefed on this enhanced approach. We will also use powers under the Public Order Act, including conditions around London synagogues during services."
New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch
Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters
Pro-Palestine activists have strongly denied that "globalise the intifada" is antisemitic or a call for violence, and British Jews have been prominent in pro-Palestine marches in the UK.
Intifada comes from the Arabic root word nafada, which means "to shake off" or "to rise up", and translates to "uprising".
Some uprisings in Arab history that have been labelled intifadas were peaceful, while the intifadas in occupied Palestine involved both civil disobedience and armed resistance against Israel.
But Health Secretary Wes Streeting claimed on Monday that the protest chant "globalise the intifada" is linked to terrorism.
'Undermines the fight against antisemitism'
Civil sociery organisations, however, have rejected that characterisation, arguing that it misrepresents both the meaning of the phrase and the intent of those using it at demonstrations.
Ben Jamal, director of the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), one of the groups which organise the regular national pro-Palestine marches in central London, told Middle East Eye the announcement "marks another low in the political repression of protest for Palestinian rights.
"The police have not consulted with the Palestine coalition who organise the major protests in London, nor representative groups of the Palestinian community in Britain before making this far reaching statement on our rights," Jamal said.
"The implication that slogans used to support the liberation of the Palestinian people are only open to interpretation by groups who have maintained complicit support for Israel’s oppression of the Palestinian people and denial of their rights is deeply problematic."
He added: "The horrific massacre in Sydney, Australia should not be used as a justification to further repress fundamental democratic rights of protest and free speech in this country."
Ismail Patel, chair of Friends of Al-Aqsa, another group that plans London marches, told MEE on Tuesday that intifada means "to shake off the Israeli occupation" and the phrase "globalising the intifada is simply a way of expressing global solidarity with efforts to end an illegal Israeli occupation and to strive for a just peace".
The Board of Deputies of British Jews welcomed the announcement from the Met and Greater Manchester Police, calling it a "necessary intervention" and saying it came "after repeated urging from the Board of Deputies and others".
In October, following a deadly attack on a synagogue in Manchester that killed two Jewish worshippers, Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the call to "internationalise the intifada" was a "call to attack Jewish communities around the world".
The statement by the police forces on Wednesday referenced the synagogue attack.
British Chief Rabbi Ephraim Mirvis said on Monday that "for far too long we have allowed chants such as globalise the intifada", which he claimed "incite hatred and which inspire people to engage in hate action".
"Why is it still allowed?" he said, adding that the meaning of chant was "what happened on Bondi Beach".
Middle East Eye delivers independent and unrivalled coverage and analysis of the Middle East, North Africa and beyond. To learn more about republishing this content and the associated fees, please fill out this form. More about MEE can be found here.
