A man from Brighton is one of six people to have been arrested in connection with an alleged plot to disrupt the London Stock Exchange.
They were alleged to be preparing to cause “huge economic damage” before police were tipped off by a newspaper.
The Metropolitan Police started an investigation after being passed information on Friday by the Daily Express.
Activists from the Palestine Action group were allegedly plotting to “target” the London Stock Exchange this morning (Monday 15 January), causing damage and “locking on” to prevent the building from opening for trading, Scotland Yard said.
The Express reported that the plot would kickstart a planned “week of chaos” while the Met added that there was a “suggestion that this was one part of a planned week of action”.
The newspaper said that the group hoped to cause “huge economic damage” by climbing on top of two revolving doors at the front of the building.
They were allegedly planning to arm themselves with red paint-filled fire extinguishers before locking their necks to the glass entrance using bike locks.
Other activists would lock themselves together in front of the main and back entrances while fake bank notes, painted red to represent blood, were fired from “money guns”.
The allegations come after a two-month investigation during which a reporter posed as a member of the group, the Express reported.
It claimed to have been in touch with the group’s ringleader, who said on the encrypted messaging app Signal that the plot was part of a week of action against British institutions “complicit in Israeli apartheid”.
The Met said that it had arrested a 31-year-old man in Liverpool yesterday on suspicion of conspiracy to cause criminal damage in relation to the incident.
Five other people, all believed to be part of the same alleged plot, were arrested later yesterday on suspicion of conspiracy to cause criminal damage.
A 29-year-old woman was arrested in Albert Road, Brent, north London, and a 23-year-old man was arrested in Voss Street, Tower Hamlets, east London.
Two women, 28 and 26, were arrested in Liverpool, and a 27-year-old man was arrested in Brighton.
Palestine Action tweeted that the “campaign to end Israel’s weapons trade remains undeterred”.
Detective Superintendent Sian Thomas said: “We believe this group was ready to carry out a disruptive and damaging stunt which could have had serious implications had it been carried out successfully.
“I’m grateful to the Express for their willingness to provide the information gleaned from their own investigation. It was instrumental in helping us intervene successfully.
“Having only been provided with the material on Friday afternoon we had limited time to act.
“Mindful of the suggestion that this was one part of a planned week of action, we are in contact with the City of London Police as well as other forces across the UK to ensure that appropriate resources are in place to deal with any disruption in the coming days.”
The Palestine Action group told PA: “The London Stock Exchange raises billions of pounds for apartheid Israel and trade shares in weapons manufacturers which arm Israel’s genocide of the Palestinian people.
“While Britain remains complicit in the brutal colonisation of Palestine, our direct action campaign will not be deterred.”
Several members of the group, which formed in July 2020 and claims to want to shut down arms trade with Israel, have been the subject of legal action in recent months.
Last month, eight activists were acquitted of a total 12 charges which included criminal damage, burglary and encouraging criminal damage, the group said.
Meanwhile, its founder, Richard Barnard, was convicted of criminal damage for his involvement in action against an Elbit Ferranti factory in Oldham, Greater Manchester.
Seven activists currently face charges of burglary and criminal damage at a trial in Bristol Crown Court after allegedly entering Elbit’s headquarters in the city.
And in September, Tony Greenstein, of Belgrave Place, Brighton, was spared prison by a judge at Wolverhampton Crown Court after a plot to attack an Elbit drone factory with sledgehammers and paint.
The police have allowed thousands of people to openly march in support of banned terrorist groups this weekend, but as soon as a few of them target the financial interests of big business they get shut down. Really makes you think.
These protest should be shut down and fast or kettled somewhere like Hyde Park. All they do is promote racist divisions in British society as so many people are simply appalled by the anti-Semitic behaviour on display at them. Freedom of speech is one thing but they should have no right to constantly disrupt businesses and peoples livelihoods that pay the taxes that fund many of the protestors benefit money. Additionally, they should have no right to support terrorists in family shopping areas or intimidate Jews who have contributed probably more to British society as a minority group than any other. Maybe this will be a wake up call to the police.
From the river to the sea, 🇮🇱 this is the flag you will see😊
Third party outsourced Freelance agent provocateur entrapment : looks like a low-level budget mini-series
I remain convinced that a lot of this is being fomented by alien actors. Patriotism has been chipped away at constantly in this country for years and sedition reaches in where national allegiance is weak.
No Israeli person has ever tried to blow me up. More than I can say for a couple of other groups.
How can anyone – especially in this town – support regimes that regularly hang homosexuals, prevent women from education and freedom of clothing and carries our public beatings and executions. Whose very stated aim is the genocide of Israelis everywhere, and subjugation of the rest of the world. A very scary bunch of people.
Or perhaps our own on these marches do know better, and actually do support the above.
On 7th October Hamas terrorists carried out a genocide slaughtering 1,250 civilians, using sexual attacks as a weapon of war – raping then mutilating young girls, beheading babies then burning their bodies.
Now a 27 year old Brighton man, from a Palestine action group, wants to attack the Stock exchange & cause “huge economic damage”. !