The British government underestimated the public response to its ban of a pro-Palestinian protest group using terrorism legislation, according to an internal document obtained by The New York Times. The document, a “community impact assessment” prepared by several government departments and police officials in March, provided official advice to ministers about the likely impact of outlawing Palestine Action, a protest group that has vandalized weapons factories and military equipment. The group was banned as a terrorist organization in July, putting it in the same category as Al Qaeda, Hezbollah and the Atomwaffen Division, a neo-Nazi group. It was the first time in modern British history that a protest group that does not call for violence against people had been labeled a terrorist organization. The decision has fueled intense debate over the attitude of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government toward protest and free speech.
