{"id":243902,"date":"2023-11-09T10:47:55","date_gmt":"2023-11-09T02:47:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.namnewsnetwork.org\/?p=243902"},"modified":"2023-11-09T10:47:56","modified_gmt":"2023-11-09T02:47:56","slug":"uk-pm-rishi-sunak-accepts-disrespectful-london-gaza-rally-will-go-ahead","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/?p=243902","title":{"rendered":"UK: PM Rishi Sunak accepts \u2018disrespectful\u2019 London Gaza rally will go ahead"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"BRITAIN-PALESTINIAN-CONFLICT-ISRAEL-DEMONSTRATION\"\/
Placards and flags during the ‘London Rally For Palestine’ in Trafalgar Square, central London<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

LONDON, Nov 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Rishi Sunak backed the \u201cright to peacefully protest\u201d even as he branded a controversial pro-Palestinian rally due to take place in London this weekend \u201cdisrespectful\u201d to the UK\u2019s war veterans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After discussing with the capital\u2019s top police officer, the British prime minister issued a statement Wednesday evening saying the country could \u201csurvive the discomfort and frustration\u201d it might cause this coming Saturday.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The solidarity march coincides with Armistice Day, which commemorates the end of World War I. The Palestine Solidarity Campaign, who organized the event, have stressed it will avoid any remembrance activity and focus on calls for a cease-fire between Israel and Hamas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The planned demo has sparked a heated debate in the UK about the trade-offs between free speech and security amid renewed Middle East conflict.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunak\u2019s statement came just after he quizzed Metropolitan Police chief Mark Rowley on the force\u2019s decision to allow the protest, despite calls from some quarters for it to be banned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his post-meeting statement, Sunak said the upcoming weekend should mark a moment of \u201cquiet reflection to remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice for this country.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And he said: \u201cIt is because that sacrifice is so immense, that Saturday\u2019s planned protest is not just disrespectful but offends our heartfelt gratitude to the memory of those who gave so much so that we may live in freedom and peace today.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But, the prime minister added, \u201cPart of that freedom is the right to peacefully protest. And the test of that freedom is whether our commitment to it can survive the discomfort and frustration of those who seek to use it, even if we disagree with them. We will meet that test and remain true to our principles.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Metropolitan Police Service is operationally independent of the British government. The Public Order Act allows Rowley to ask the British home secretary\u2019s permission to ban or place conditions on protests.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But the police chief has said the legal threshold to stop the march on security grounds has \u201cnot been met\u201d and warned there must be \u201ca real threat of serious disorder and no other way for police to manage the event\u201d for the police to take such a step.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOver recent weeks we\u2019ve seen an escalation of violence and criminality by small groups attaching themselves to demonstrations, despite some key organizers working positively with us,\u201d he said. \u201cBut at this time, the intelligence surrounding the potential for serious disorder this weekend does not meet the threshold to apply for a ban.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sunak said Wednesday night that he had asked Rowley to \u201cprovide reassurances that the police are taking every step necessary to safeguard remembrance services\u201d and \u201ckeep the public safe from disorder this weekend.\u201d — NNN-AGENCIES<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

LONDON, Nov 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Rishi Sunak backed the \u201cright to peacefully protest\u201d even as he branded a controversial pro-Palestinian rally due to take place in London this weekend \u201cdisrespectful\u201d to the UK\u2019s war veterans. After discussing with the capital\u2019s top police officer, the British prime minister issued a statement Wednesday evening saying the country […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[209,217],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243902"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/11"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=243902"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243902\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":243905,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243902\/revisions\/243905"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=243902"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=243902"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/namnewsnetwork.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=243902"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}