In the capital city of England, London, a person climbed the iconic Elizabeth Tower, commonly known as “Big Ben,” with a Palestinian flag in hand. The protester hanging on the tower for hours is shouting the slogan “Free Palestine” from a height of meters. Vibrant moments are experienced in the center of London due to a protester in England climbing the Elizabeth Tower, known as “Big Ben” of the parliament, and unfurling a Palestinian flag.
The protester, using the name “Free_all.of.us” on the social media platform Instagram, began climbing the tower from the parliament’s iron railings in the morning hours. Shortly after, the protester noticed by the police continued climbing, leading to the fire department and health teams being called to the area. The police also closed off the street in front of the tower connecting to Westminster Bridge to traffic.
The individual unfurling the Palestinian flag and chanting slogans shared in videos on Instagram stated, “Democracy is dead, imprisoned. Peaceful protests, civil disobedience, climate activists are receiving 45-year prison sentences. Palestinian activists are being jailed for doing what the government should do, such as stopping selling weapons to the terrorist state of Israel.”
The activist recalled that the planned rally in front of the BBC building was blocked by the police, saying, “We are experiencing violence at the hands of the police. That’s why I’m doing this protest at the supposed center of democracy.”
Requesting that the fire department not attempt to bring them down, the activist frequently chanted “Free Palestine” slogans. Some citizens gathered in front of the parliament also showed their support to the activist through chants. The videos shared by the activist showed that they climbed the 165-year-old tower barefoot and without tools, but there were bloodstains where they stepped due to cuts on their feet.
Furthermore, it was observed that a group of three individuals climbed the fire ladder to negotiate with the activist. When asked to speak to the police, the activist responded, “I have nothing to say to the police,” and asked them not to approach.
The London Metropolitan Police stated that they responded to the scene upon receiving a report at 07.24 (GMT 10.24) and that the London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service were assessing the situation.
A statement from the UK Parliament mentioned, “We take the security of Parliament extremely seriously, but we will not comment on the measures taken specifically for this incident.”
As of 14.00 local time (GMT 17.00), the activist’s protest at Big Ben is ongoing.