London’s Metropolitan Police is facing a backlash after one of its advisers was revealed to be an activist who has made statements critics say are calling for The destruction of Israel.
Attiq Malik, consultant with the Metropolitan Policewas caught on video encouragingly shouting “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free” during the 2021 protests, according to a Telegraph report.
The phrase has been called “an anti-Semitic slogan commonly seen in anti-Israel campaigns and shouted at demonstrations” by the Anti-Defamation League and denounced by the British government as “deeply offensive”, according to the report.
“This rallying cry has long been used by anti-Israel voices, including supporters of terrorist organizations such as Hamas and the PFLP, who seek the destruction of Israel through violent means,” says an explainer of the phrase on the ADL’s website. “It is essentially a call for a Palestinian state stretching from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea, territory that includes the State of Israel, which would mean the dissolution of the Jewish state.”
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Attiq Malik has come under fire for his role as a consultant in London’s Metropolitan Police. (Jonathan Brady/PA Images via Getty Images)
Malik’s role with the Met Police has become increasingly controversial in recent weeks, notably after his presence in the police operations room during the anti-Israel protests in London last month. Critics had already noted the police’s lack of response to protesters calling for “jihad” during the protests, according to reports.
Attention to Malik’s involvement with the police comes as the agency has also come under fire for seemingly unequal policing practices that favored pro-Palestinian protestersincluding the arrest of a man who posted a video on social media criticizing people who put up Palestinian flags in a UK neighbourhood.
According to an Express report, the viral video shows the man saying, “Look at this c— here,” as he zooms in on Palestinian flags mounted on lampposts and road signs, adding, “You let him in on this the country and this s— they think.”
The man was later arrested “on suspicion of a Section 5 racially aggravated public order offence”, according to the report, and taken into custody at an East London police station.
Metropolitan Police officers monitor protesters calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza. (Andrew Aitchison/Photos via Getty Images)
After comment from Fox News Digital, the Metropolitan Police confirmed the man’s arrest, saying he was later “committed to return for a rendezvous at the end of November”.
“More than 1,000 officers are providing high-visibility patrols across London – particularly where we know communities feel vulnerable,” a police spokesman said. “We take all allegations of hate crime incredibly seriously. Where offenses have taken place, our officers attend, support victims and make arrests – and we will continue to do so.”
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Asked if there had been a similar crackdown on anti-Semitic social media posts, the police spokesman said they would add “nothing further”.
Critics have also taken to social media to criticize the police for their treatment of United Kingdom Veterans in the face of threats by pro-Palestinian protesters to march on the country’s main memorial to the war dead during the country’s Remembrance Day on Saturday.
Metropolitan Police officers confront protesters. (Andrew Aitchison/Photos via Getty Images)
In a viral video posted on X, police can be seen telling British veterans to stay behind barricades holding British flags, with one protester pointing out that protesters have been allowed to march down the street waving Palestinian flags without similar control.
Meanwhile, British broadcaster and former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage called out the police for taking a more friendly tone with pro-Palestinian protesters, posting a video showing a police officer punching one of the protesters.
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“Those we pay to protect us are now motivated by cowardice,” Farage told X.
