Today, twenty-six people defied the ban on Palestine Action outside of Truro Cathedral, Cornwall, by holding signs that read “I oppose genocide, I support Palestine Action.” This action was part of a series of protests across the UK organised by Defend Our Juries, a non-violent civil resistance group. The demonstration in Truro was part of a day of action, which also saw demonstrations of a similar nature in Aberystwyth, Cardiff, Gloucester, Leeds, Newcastle, Northampton, Nottingham, and Oxford. Arrests were also made at these locations, but police did not make any arrests in Edinburgh, where 49 sitters took action.

Of the twenty-six who sat silently in protest of the ban, only eight were arrested under Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000, with one being granted “street bail” and others being taken to be held in police custody. A message recorded by Defend Our Juries showed that Devon and Cornwall Police had “closed the log” on the incident, despite a remaining number of protesters continuing to defy the ban until the early hours of this evening.

Those arrested chose to peacefully lie and almost all were carried to police vans in order to be searched. Speaking with police on the scene, it was said that the stations in Cornwall did not have a large enough capacity to hold the number who had defied the ban. In other terms, the police force had been overwhelmed with the numbers of protesters present outside of the Cathedral.

In a statement given to press, Defend Our Juries Cornwall stated:

“The police were there from the outset, filming all those present but clearly without either the vehicle capacity or the numbers on site to arrest all 26 sitters. Shortly before 2pm they began issuing 1-1 warnings, before commencing arrests at about 2.15pm.

“Appearing to target those who had already been arrested under Section 13 of the Terrorism Act 2000 at previous Lift The Ban actions, arrests then proceeded slowly until, having arrested only 8 out of 26 sitters, all three police vans as well as all Police and Police Liaison personnel left the site. This was despite having first stated their intention to return and continue with the arrests once these eight people had been processed at Camborne and Newquay police stations, if sitters were still in place at that point.

“The two police stations where processing is taking place are about a 45 minute drive from Truro, so it seems unlikely, based on their own account, that the police arresting teams will be back on site before dark. At the time of writing most of the remaining sitters are still gathered in front of the cathedral, having decided to stay in place for now. A drone hovers overhead, where it has been surveying the action since it began.”

In the video released by Defend Our Juries, protesters were advised to submit Subject Access Requests to establish the reason they had not be selected for arrest by the police present.

Image Via: Cobblestone Media.