More than 250 protesters sat outside the conference centre holding banners with words supporting the group before dozens of police began making arrests. The BBC reported that scores of officers stood by, warned demonstrators they were illegally holding signs supporting a proscribed organisation, and then began making arrests. Officers asked people whether they would continue holding up the signs, then led them away and told them they were being arrested under the Terrorism Act. Jewish News reported that officers stepped in at around 1pm, shortly after the signs were unveiled.
Among those detained were Massive Attack singer Robert Del Naja and Margaret Owen, a 94-year-old human rights barrister. Demonstrators cheered each time someone was carried away. None of the reporting reviewed for this article mentions injuries or clashes.
The arrest count rose during the day. Anadolu Agency initially reported two arrests. Jewish News then reported up to 20. The most recent figure comes from Merseyside Police, as reported by the BBC: more than 50 people detained, with officers still making arrests when the statement was issued. It remains unclear whether the total has risen further.
Why Were Protesters Arrested?
Merseyside Police said officers were arresting people on suspicion of wearing or carrying an article in support of a proscribed organisation. Jewish News reported the arrests were made under Section 13 of the Terrorism Act. An arrest is not a charge or a finding of guilt, and displaying a message does not by itself establish criminal intent. That question is decided later, by prosecutors and courts.
What Protesters Were Demanding
Defend Our Juries had billed the event as a mass, silent sign-holding vigil calling on the government to drop the ban. A spokesperson said the group had hoped Burnham would lift the ban given public pressure and the resources needed to enforce it, and called the continued proscription “illogical, unsustainable and immoral.” One protester told Al Jazeera the protest was about the right to free speech. Del Naja held a sign reading “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action.” Separately, activists confronted Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband in a Liverpool restaurant to demand he lift the ban. He reportedly declined to comment.
What Police Said
Merseyside Police said it respected people’s right to protest lawfully while aiming to keep the peace and keep the public safe. According to a summary of BBC reporting, the force said it had made detailed, co-ordinated plans in advance so that its approach would be consistent, fair and proportionate.
What the UK Government Says
Then-Home Secretary Yvette Cooper proscribed the group in July 2025, after members broke into RAF Brize Norton in Oxfordshire and spray-painted two military planes. Police estimated the damage at £7 million, and the group said its activists were responding to the UK’s indirect military support for Israel. After a High Court ruling against the ban, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said supporting the Palestinian cause is not the same as supporting Palestine Action, and that the court had acknowledged the group had carried out acts of terrorism. Separately, four Palestine Action activists were jailed after £1.2 million of damage at a UK site of an Israel-based defence firm. These are the government’s stated reasons. The group and its supporters dispute the terrorism designation.
The Legal Background
The ban has been tested repeatedly in court. On February 13, 2026, the High Court found the proscription disproportionate and in breach of free speech rights, though it said a very small number of the group’s actions met the statutory definition of terrorism. On June 15, 2026, the Court of Appeal ruled the proscription lawful and proportionate. The Supreme Court then granted Palestine Action co-founder Huda Ammori permission to appeal on one ground only. The Jewish Chronicle reported that this ground concerns whether the Home Secretary correctly applied her own policy, and that permission was refused on the freedom of speech and association ground. The Supreme Court’s website lists the full hearing for November 4–5, 2026. Legal cases against thousands of people arrested for alleged support of the group remain in limbo until the hearing. Al Jazeera reports more than 3,600 people have been arrested since the ban began.
Reactions
Amnesty International UK chief executive Kerry Moscogiuri called the arrests “a truly shameful attack on freedom of speech” and asked whether the new prime minister would reform the laws. That is Amnesty’s characterisation, not an official finding. No statement from the Labour Party or the government on the Liverpool arrests appeared in the reporting reviewed.
What Happens Next?
The Supreme Court appeal is the main scheduled development. Defend Our Juries has run a sustained campaign against the ban, but no further protest date was confirmed in the reporting reviewed. Merseyside Police have not said whether those arrested will be charged or bailed.
What Remains Unknown
It remains unclear how many people were ultimately arrested, whether any have been charged or released, and what has happened to Del Naja and Owen since. Authorities have not confirmed whether the arrests continued after the statement was issued. The Labour Party and government response is not yet known.
Written by Hamna Arshad