UK PM Starmer says some pro-Palestinian marches could be banned

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer says banning some pro-Palestinian marches could be justified, reports Al Jazeera.

Starmer is under pressure to act after a spate of anti-Jewish incidents, including this week’s stabbing of two men in the north London suburb of Golders Green, which is home to a large Jewish community.

Starmer, a former human rights lawyer and chief public prosecutor whose wife is of Jewish origin, said many Jewish people told him they were affected by “the repeat nature” of the protests.

“I’m a big defender of freedom of expression, peaceful protests,” he told the BBC. “But when there are chants like ‘globalise the intifada’, that’s completely off limits. Clearly, there should be tougher action in relation to that.”

The intifada refers to the Palestinian civilian uprisings against Israel from 1987 to 1993 and the early 2000s.

Starmer said he wanted to police the language used in marches more strongly, and there are “instances” when some protests should be stopped altogether.

In December last year, police in London and the northwest city of Manchester said they would arrest anyone chanting “globalise the intifada”.

The Jewish community in the UK views the chant as “very, very dangerous”, said Starmer.