Hundreds of people are expected to attend a rally in Central London this evening to mark the start of Youth Demand’s month-long series of actions to Shut it Down for Palestine. They are demanding that the UK government impose a total trade embargo on Israel and make the super rich and fossil fuel elite pay damages to communities and countries most harmed by fossil fuel burning. [1]
Pro Palestine groups including Prayers 4 Gaza, Palestine Pulse, Fight Racism Fight Imperialism, For Palestine, Thanet for Palestine, Greenwich for Palestine are expected to gather at 6:30pm at Senate House Library, Malet Street, WC1E 7HU to show solidarity with Youth Demand supporters arrested last week at Westminster Quaker meeting house and in a series of house raids. [2]
The Quaker Meeting House raid in which around 20 police officers armed with tasers broke down the door and arrested six young women has been condemned both as an aggressive violation of a peaceful place of worship and an unprecedented attack on freedom of assembly by the Quakers, Brian Eno and by commentators from across the political spectrum. [3][4][5]
Speakers at the event tonight include Fiona Lali and speakers from Prayers 4 Gaza, SOAS and Fight Racism Fight Imperialism.
Youth Demand has pledged to Shut Down London during April in support of its demands using swarming actions. These are expected to start on Saturday 5th April at 11am at Lincoln’s Inn Fields, WC2A 3BP. Further publicly advertised open rallies and actions are planned every Tuesday and Saturday during April.
Youth Demand spokesperson Arthur Clifton, 24 from London, who is speaking at tonight’s rally said:
“After such shameful and obvious attempts by the police to intimidate people resisting genocide, it’s incredible to see so many groups coming out in a show of collective strength.
The state is recklessly scrambling to silence us because they know people are ready to escalate. They are terrified of the impact of continued disruptive action. They know it would destroy their already threadbare legitimacy. But the intimidation won’t work, as has been proved by the outpouring of support and defiance. It’s really simple. When you are arming genocide, we will stand together against it. No matter what.”
Also speaking tonight is Zahra Ali, an 18 year old student, who was arrested at the Quaker Meeting House on Thursday and subsequently had her home raided by police. She said:
“I refuse to stand by and watch while countless Gazan children are maimed and slaughtered by Israeli war criminals, while our government all but cheers them on. The government is arming a genocidal state and that makes all of us complicit in their crimes. Well not in my name. We cannot do business with a genocidal state. I’m taking to the streets with other young people day after day in April to demand action, to demand a total trade embargo on Israel. If that means I get arrested for speaking the truth that the government doesn’t want you to hear, so be it. The system is broken, let’s shut it down!”
Prayers4Gaza issued the following statement:
“Whilst Britain sinks deeper into austerity with funding cuts in essential public services like the NHS, the UK government is using British taxes to fund a brutal genocide. The British public do not consent for their taxes and labour to be spent on state sponsored terrorism and crimes against humanity.
The UK government is committing state sponsored theft of people’s hard earned taxes, then arresting and repressing people who peacefully protest and object to this. The UK government has failed to represent the wishes of the people they are elected to represent, and instead represent the interests of the Zionist regime who cemented their path to power. When injustice becomes law, rebellion becomes a duty!”
We refuse to be ruled by liars, war criminals and arsonists. We will not let them get away with this. We refuse to be ignored. It’s time for young people to take to the streets day after day and shut London down. Only sustained mass resistance can put an end to genocide. By standing together we can grind the murder machine to a standstill. It’s time to disrupt. Join us every week in April, starting tonight.
ENDS
Youth Demand Press contact: 07762 987334
Press email: YouthDemandPress@protonmail.com
High quality images & video here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13vFus2e8TEI_bfhIYHXEIV-IZV86P9v9
Website: https://youthdemand.org
Twitter: https://x.com/youth_demand
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_youthdemand
Tiktok: https://www.tiktok.com/@youth.demand
Notes to Editors
[1] Youth Demand is a youth resistance campaign fighting for an end to genocide in Palestine and across the globe as a result of the climate crisis.
Our demands:
Stop all trade with Israel:the UK government must impose a total trade embargo on Israel.
Make the rich pay: the UK government must raise £1tn by 2030 from the super rich and fossil fuel elite to pay damages to communities and countries most harmed by fossil fuel burning.
Youth Demand is part of Umbrella and a member of the A22 Network of civil resistance projects.
[2] https://youthdemand.org/2025/03/28/nine-arrested-in-unprecedented-crackdown-on-youth-demand/
[3] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cj3x5j6g30ro
[5] https://www.stopwar.org.uk/article/brian-eno-statement-on-arrests-at-a-quaker-meeting-house/
