Met Police used new draconian stop & search powers against 47 protestors – 40 of whom were demonstrating against the war in Gaza, research by Big Brother Watch reveals. Jake Hurfurt, the group’s head of research said:
“When the Public Order Act was passed, civil liberties groups warned that these draconian new powers could be used to stifle protest rights.
“The apparent targeting of pro-Palestine protest in the prime minister’s constituency only underlines the danger these broadly drawn stop and search powers pose to our right to free assembly.
“This Met police data gives an alarming impression of police selectively targeting protesters. Zero arrests from 40 searches suggests that there was no justification for officers to use these powers at that protest.”
The Guardian – Met police accused of targeting pro-Palestine protesters for stop and search