Met Police antisemitism row - live: Gideon Falter says police response ‘shambolic’ as Sunak backs Mark Rowley

Gideon Falter, the chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA), denies these claims

‘I was being treated like a criminal for being Jewish’

Gideon Falter has renewed his criticism of the Met Police, claiming he has not been offered a meeting with Sir Mark Rowley as the commissioner suggested.

Sir Rowley and London mayor Sadiq Khan met with members of London’s Jewish community, including the Board of Deputies of British Jews, the London Jewish Forum and the Community Safety Trust, earlier today.

In a statement, Mr Falter said: “Since the incident, the Met has issued and withdrawn a series of statements, some apologetic and some belligerent. There have also been suggestions in the media that the Commissioner, Sir Mark Rowley, has offered to meet with me. No such meeting has been offered”.

“The Met’s response to this incident has been shambolic,” he added.

This comes as prime minister Rishi Sunak expressed his confidence in under-fire commissioner Sir Mark.

Speaking at a Downing Street press conference this morning, Mr Sunak said: “What happened was clearly wrong. And it’s right that they’ve apologised for that.

“I do have confidence in him, but that’s on the basis that he works to rebuild the confidence and trust of not just the Jewish community, but the wider public, particularly people in London but more broadly,” he added.

Key Points

• Sir Mark Rowley will meet members of London’s Jewish community with mayor Sadiq Khan today to discuss ‘community relations'
• Gideon Falter: ‘I being treated like a criminal for being Jewish'
• More than 7,000 people sign petition calling for Sir Mark to be sacked

[22 April 2024 19:30 · Jabed Ahmed]

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[22 April 2024 19:00 · Jabed Ahmed]

Comment: Two very public apologies (and an apology for the apology): Is this a new low for the Met?

The force has been involved in a series of high-profile blunders, this week. Femi Oluwole asks how the Metropolitan Police has been allowed to put its foot in it so badly, for so long – with such damaging results.

Read the full Voices article here:

[22 April 2024 18:30 · Jabed Ahmed]

Comment: How Jewish-looking do you have to be to be considered too provocative to cross the road?

During the now-routine pro-Palestine marches through London on Saturdays, should Jewish people like me have to take detours or adjust our appearance because the Metropolitan Police is seemingly incapable of distinguishing between free speech and hate speech, asks Mark Honigsbaum.

Read the full Voices article here:

[22 April 2024 17:12 · Jabed Ahmed]

Who is Gideon Falter? Campaigner at centre of Palestine march antisemitism row

[22 April 2024 16:50 · Jabed Ahmed]

Gideon Falter accused of ‘provoking’ incident to halt pro-Palestine protests

Gideon Falter – along with former home secretary Suella Braverman – has led calls for Metropolitan Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley to resign.

However the march organiser Ben Jamal, director of Palestine Solidarity Campaign, has accused Mr Falter – who is chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) – of attending the march with a film crew to “provoke a confrontation”.

Read the full article here:

[22 April 2024 16:20 · Jabed Ahmed]

Pictured: Children of Holocaust survivors at pro-Palestine demonstrations

Children of Holocaust survivors disagree that the Met Police are  enforcing a “Jew-free zone” during pro-Palestine marches.

Mark Etkind, the son of a Holocaust survivor, has shared photos of himself and four others standing unchallenged at the side of the march on 13 April, where an altercation ensured between Gideon Falter and a police officer.

“Gideon Falter has even claimed that central London was a ‘a police enforced Jew-free zone’ on that day. These claims are completely contradicted by the photograph,” Mr Etkind said.

“I, and other Holocaust survivor descendants, have been regularly attending these London protests with placards showing that we are ‘openly Jewish’.

“We have, so far, not experienced any antisemitism at all. Many others on the regular Jewish bloc have had similar experiences.

Four people related to Holocaust survivors, and one direct victims of the Holocaust, stand at a pro-Palestine march in support of the demonstration (X / @Aliwala786110)

[22 April 2024 15:51 · Jabed Ahmed]

Holocaust survivors’ descendants deny Palestine marches are no-go zones for Jewish people

Children of Holocaust survivors have hit back at claims the Metropolitan Police were enforcing a “Jew-free zone” during a pro-Palestine march in London - as they showed a photo of them standing unchallenged at the latest demonstration.

Mark Etkind, the son of a Holocaust survivor, has shared photos of himself and four others standing unchallenged at the side of the march on 13 April. As they were holding signs identifying them as the children of Holocaust survivors, Mr Etkind said this was evidence counter to the idea put forward by Mr Falter the police were allowing Palestine marches to spread antisemitism.

Read the full article here:

[22 April 2024 14:45 · Jabed Ahmed]

The incident ‘clearly wasn’t handled properly’, says shadow Home Secretary

Shadow home secretary Yvette Cooper has said it is “right” that the Metropolitan Police have apologised for the way officers treated antisemitism campaigner Gideon Falter.

Speaking to broadcasters at St George’s Park in Staffordshire on Monday, Ms Cooper said the incident “clearly wasn’t handled properly”.

She said: “It was wrongly handled and rightly there has been an apology from the Met for that. But I also think that the police work immensely hard every single day to keep us safe.

“The Met Commissioner is leading important reforms to the Metropolitan Police in London, and it’s really important that we work with the police to make sure that communities can be kept safe across the country.”

She added that Labour have also set out reforms that would rebuild the public’s confidence in policing, “which has been hit after 14 years of Conservative Government”.

[22 April 2024 14:30 · Jabed Ahmed]

Representatives of Jewish community meet with Sir Mark Rowley

Representatives of Jewish community groups including the Community Security Trust (CST) and London Jewish Forum met with Sir Mark and Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist, who leads public order policing, this morning.

The CST said it would continue to push for a reduction in the number of pro-Palestine protests permitted in central London.

It released a statement following the meeting that said: “We will continue our dialogue with police later this week to express our concerns regarding the cumulative impact of the repeated anti-Israel protests in terms of disruption and intimidation of the Jewish community.

“We urge the police and Government to work together to find ways to limit this impact through reducing the number of protests, moving them to less disruptive locations and acting firmly and consistently whenever offences are committed by people on the demonstrations.”

[22 April 2024 14:00 · Jabed Ahmed]

Sir Mark to discuss protests with mayor Sadiq Khan and Jewish groups

Sir Mark will meet members of London’s Jewish community and mayor Sadiq Khan today to discuss “community relations” following the force’s handing of the incident.

They are expected to speak to representatives of organisations including the Board of Deputies of British Jews, the London Jewish Forum and the Community Safety Trust.

He will also meet Home Secretary James Cleverly in the coming days.

Read the full article here: