Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell demand the Met release bodycam footage after being questioned by police following a pro-Palestinian rally.
London: So, Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell were at this pro-Palestinian rally, right? They’re now asking the Metropolitan Police to release the bodycam footage from the event. This all happened after they were questioned by the police.
They both showed up at the protest organized by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign, where things got a bit heated, and over 75 people were arrested. The rally had to be moved to Whitehall because the police didn’t allow them to march from Portland Place, which is near the BBC.
According to the police, some demonstrators broke through a line and gathered in Trafalgar Square, which led to the arrests. Corbyn, who’s 75 and represents Islington North, and McDonnell, 73, from Hayes and Harlington, went to a police station to be interviewed under caution after the protest.
Corbyn said the police’s version of events wasn’t right. He explained that they were part of a group that wanted to lay flowers in memory of children killed in Gaza. He insisted they didn’t force their way through and that the police had actually facilitated their actions.
McDonnell backed him up, saying they were allowed to go through and only laid down flowers before dispersing. He also mentioned that a steward was arrested while trying to organize the flower presentation, which he found troubling.
Both of them now sit as independents in Parliament. The police reported that three men, including Corbyn and McDonnell, voluntarily went to a station to be interviewed. They also mentioned that nine others were charged with public order offenses after the protest.
It seems this protest had the highest number of arrests for the Palestine Solidarity Campaign since October 2023. The police are taking this seriously, claiming there was a deliberate effort to breach conditions during the protest.
