Police arrest over 50 demonstrators during Palestine Action ban protests in Liverpool

Police arrested more than 50 people during protests against the ban on the group Palestine Action on the sidelines of the British Labor Party conference in Liverpool, northern England. Some of those present showed materials in support of the group, which is classified as a terrorist organization in Great Britain, police said on Sunday evening.

According to the British news agency PA, more than 250 demonstrators had gathered in front of the conference center where the ruling Labor Party meets until Wednesday. Many had posters and banners with slogans like “I support Palestine Action.”

According to PA, the human rights organization Amnesty International criticized the arrests as a “shameful attack on freedom of expression.” A spokesman for the organization Defend Our Juries, which organized the protest, said, according to PA: "We had hoped that the new Prime Minister Andy Burnham would make the sensible decision to lift the ban on Palestine Action." Maintaining the ban would be "illogical, untenable and immoral" and its implementation would waste a lot of resources, the spokesman said.

Palestine Action classified as terrorist

Palestine Action was designated terrorist in early July 2025 after activists invaded an air base and sprayed paint on Royal Air Force planes. However, High Court judges ruled in February this year that the group's ban was unlawful under terrorism laws. The ban remained in effect for the time being to allow time for a possible appeal.