Suella Braverman to question Met Police chief over response to Gaza protests

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Home Secretary Suella Braverman will question Metropolitan Police Chief Sir Mark Rowley over the police response to protesters chanting "jihad" during of a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London.

< p>Several hundred people organized by Hizb ut-Tahrir on Saturday, and a handful were filmed shouting "jihad" when asked by a speaker what needed to be done to "liberate people from the concentration camp called Palestine."

Scotland Yard said its counter-terrorism officers had assessed the footage and had not identified any offence, with the force emphasizing that the word "jihad" has many meanings.

But the Met said officers would attend. the speaker to "discourage any repetition of similar chants", in recognition of "how language like this will be interpreted by the public and the divisive impact it will have."

However, Ms Braverman is expected to raise the incident at a meeting planned for Monday with the Met commissioner to discuss ongoing protests sparked by the war between Israel and Hamas, after militants broke into the Gaza border on October 7 and massacred some 1,400 Israelis.

Images show several men shouting “jihad” during the march organized by Hizb ut-Tahrir

(screenshot)

“The House Secretary is already scheduled to meet with the Metropolitan Police Commissioner tomorrow [Monday] to discuss the ongoing protests between Israel and Gaza and will ask explanations about the response to the incidents that took place on Saturday,” a source close to Ms. Braverman told several media outlets. .

“There can be no place for incitement to hatred or violence in Britain...