Anti-semitism campaigner threatened with arrest for being 'openly Jewish' cancels protest walk over safety fears
- Campaign Against Antisemitism cancels walk during protest over safety fears
An anti-semitism campaigner who was threatened with arrest for being 'openly Jewish' at a pro-Palestine march has cancelled a protest walk over safety fears.
Gideon Falter, head of the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), today cancelled the Walk Together initiative, where 'thousands' of protesters were set to head to a pro-Palestine march on Saturday.
He said: 'The Met Police has told us of its desire to protect Jews walking in the area, but we have to be sure that they can.
'Thousands of people have been intending to join and then walk where they please – things we used to take for granted in London as Jewish people – but we do not have confidence that they would be safe.
'We have received numerous threats and our monitoring has identified hostile actors who seem to have intended to come to any meeting locations that we announced. The risk to the safety of those who wished to walk openly as Jews in London tomorrow as part of this initiative has therefore become too great.'
Anti-semitism campaigner Gideon Falter, who was threatened with arrest for being 'openly Jewish' at a pro-Palestine march, has cancelled a protest walk over safety fears
Mr Falter has led calls for the resignation of Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley (pictured) after an officer said his being 'openly Jewish' was a 'breach of the peace'
Gideon Falter (pictured), head of the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), today cancelled the Walk Together initiative, where 'thousands' of protesters were set to head to a pro-Palestine march on Saturday
Mr Falter last week called on supporters to join him for a walk on Saturday, April 27, at the same time as a pro-Palestine march through central London.
In a letter to Met Police Chief Superintendent Andy Brittain last Friday, April 19, the CAA chief wrote: 'I am not planning a protest on 27th April. I am going for a walk as a private individual. I have not yet decided where I will walk, however it is likely that whilst walking I will be quite openly Jewish. Others might decide to join me. They might not. That is a matter for them. They might also be quite openly Jewish. They might not. That is also a matter for them.'
Mr Falter has led calls for the resignation of Met Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley after an officer said his being 'openly Jewish' was a 'breach of the peace' and other criticisms of how pro-Palestine marches are policed.
Britain's top police officer this week had crisis meetings with two politicians that can sack him - Home Secretary James Cleverly and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.
He said last night that the sergeant at the centre of the row had assessed there was a 'risk of confrontation' due to Mr Falter's presence.
He told the Guardian: 'The sergeant at the scene clearly assessed that there was a risk of confrontation and was trying to help Mr Falter find a different route.
'I completely understand why the sergeant made this assessment. A couple of turns of phrase were clumsy and offensive… and we’ve apologised for that.
'The wider actions and intent of the officer were professional and in the best tradition of British police trying to prevent disorder.'
Sir Rowley added: 'The public would be horrified if we said: well, it’s obvious if those two groups come together, there’s going to be a massive fight. We’ll stand back and wait till it happens and we’ll pick up the pieces afterwards.'
Rishi Sunak this week piled pressure on Met commissioner Sir Mark Rowley, saying the force must rebuild the trust of the Jewish community
In his statement today, Mr Falter added: 'There are Jewish communities whose Rabbis have given dispensation to their congregants to walk for hours on Shabbat in order to come to central London, such is the depth of feeling among British Jews about the weekly marches, the record breaking levels of anti-semitism and the repeated police failures.
'Tomorrow's march by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign meanders for two-and-half miles from Parliament Square to Reformer's Tree in Hyde Park.
'When we organised our March Against Anti-semitism a few months ago, an entirely peaceful march, we were told that there was no way the Royal Parks could be used. Well guess what? New rules apparently.
'And for the hours that this march drags on central London will be snarled up yet again.
'Police intend to handle the march no differently from their current habit - the one that they have become so accustomed to- because over the course of more than six months we have become all to used to seeing anti-semitic chants and placards at these marches, glorification of terrorism and even violence, including attacks on police which have hospitalised officers.
'Our volunteers and members of the public have exposed week after week, month after month how widely extremist views are held among participants on these marches.'
He added: 'Yesterday we met with the Home Secretary and the Minister for Policing to propose concrete measures which can force the police to change their approach. This situation cannot endure much longer and firm action is needed urgently, which we made clear at the meeting.
'Tomorrow, we will watch to see whether anything is different about the way that the Met handles the march, and in the coming week we will progress our discussions with the Government. We cannot allow the current situation to become the new normal.'
MailOnline has contacted the Met for comment but one was not immediately available.
The force has apologised twice over the incident on April 13, issuing one initial statement and then saying sorry for its first apology which had suggested opponents of pro-Palestinian marches 'must know that their presence is provocative'.
A 13-minute of the exchange shows Mr Falter telling police he wants to cross a road to reach Kingsway in central London as crowds of pro-Palestinian protesters pass.
He tells one officer: 'The Metropolitan Police says that these marches are completely safe for Jews, there is no problem whatsoever.
'You are telling me that I cannot walk to the other pavement. That I have to be escorted by you.'
The officer says: 'I am telling you that I will help you by escorting you over there and that way you will be completely safe, just as we promised, so we are keeping our word.'
Mr Falter later said he will turn up at the next pro-Palestinian march and encouraged other Jews and allies to join him as more than 1,500 protesters are set to join him to press Scotland Yard to keep the streets safe for Jewish people, but this was today cancelled.
Pro-Palestine protesters are seen waving banners at the march on London
People hold a variety of flags and placards at the protests in London on Saturday April 13, including Palestine and Israel national flags
Pro-Palestinian supporters speak with a police officer during a protest organised by Turning Point UK in London on Saturday April 13
The Met faces potential clashes at the march as the anti-Semitism campaigner threatened with arrest for being 'openly Jewish' launched the 'walk together' campaign.
Since the incident on April 13, almost 9,000 people have signed a petition calling for the resignation of Britain's top police officer.
Sir Mark has come under sustained criticism from senior figures, and Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said this week that the Met must win back public confidence by policing protests properly.
Mr Sunak said: 'I was shocked to see that footage over the weekend, as I'm sure many people were. That's why when I was asked yesterday I was very clear that the police have got to not just manage these protests, they've got to police them.
'That's a point I made when I spoke from the steps of Downing Street about this.
'People are seeing scenes like that that they don't understand, they don't think are acceptable and that they think undermine the values that are important to us as a country and society.
'My expectation is that the Met Commissioner regains the trust and confidence of the Jewish community and the public more broadly when it comes to how these protests are being policed and not just managed.'
Former former home secretary Suella Braverman who told Radio 4 this week: 'The police have chosen a side.'
Deputy Foreign Secretary Andrew Mitchell told Sky News: 'There are strategic issues... how we ensure that Jewish people, people of any faith at all, can go about their business.'
Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the incident 'clearly wasn't handled properly... but the police work immensely hard every single day to keep us safe'.
