# A Riot Cop's perspective on the Gaza protests...



## soam (Jan 12, 2009)

The account below is from 'Met County Mounty', one of the Public Order Cops who was Policing Saturdays demo, and gives an account of situation from his(?) viewpoint. Like his piece on the Climate Camp it makes for interesting reading, and offers an insight into police tactics on the day:

So.... who started it?
Around 100-120k people marched yesterday. We were briefed that the public order branch expected, and had been told the plan had been arranged for around 15-20k, despite it being all over the media and sites like Indymedia that around 100k were due to turn up. The estimates on numbers are usually somewhere between the Police ones (invariably considerably less than there actually are) and the organisers who seriously ramp up the turn out. On this occasion however, the front of the march reached the embassy as the back had not long left Hyde Park, a distance of just under 1.5 miles, and it was packed, literally building line to building line across 4 lanes of road. We were told (at around 3pm) the official Police estimate was 20-25k, which was complete and utter bollocks. There were a hell of a lot of people, at the front end were families and old people, at the back were mostly young males.

As usual we had been told that our role was to facilitate the lawful demonstration and that we were effectively 'community Policing' unless the situation changed and things became violent. Crucially, we were told that despite the fact that nearly every march relating to the Gaza/Israel situation had experienced violence, this was not sufficient evidence to suggest that THIS march would become violent. As such, because the senior officers are so afraid of offending the wrong people, we were NOT in possession of riot helmets or shields which were left on the carriers, although we all were in our protective gear and coveralls under the yellow jackets. We were wearing our normal everyday beat helmets and to say some were not happy about that would be a slight understatement.

Unlike at football matches where fixtures are given categories to judge the expected level of violence based on previous experience (A = virtually nil, C+ something like Millwall v Chelsea, Rangers v Celtic etc) these aren't used at demos, which is why we have FIT - forward intelligence teams - who identify specific individuals based on known previous history, in order to judge the expected level of hostility.

My serial was one of the several dozen at the front of the march. The organisers had loads of volunteer stewards whose job was supposed to be to facilitate the movement of the march although they were all as emotionally involved with the march as everyone else there. They were organised at the front in three separate ranks, with the 'celeb' marchers in between the 1st and 2nd, and the rest of the march behind the 3rd. Not long after we set off a group of about a hundred young males broke through their own stewards and sprinted off towards the Police serials at the head of the march. After some negotiation with the stewards, they agreed (eventually) to rejoin the march behind the stewards and celebs. Our serials at the front were stretched out along the sides of the march, with a couple of officers every 50-10o meters or so.

Things were pretty peaceful for the whole length of the Bayswater Road and although very emotive, there was quite a bit of banter between the Police officers and the demonstrators and things stayed that way despite the massive numbers until the head of the march got to the North Gate of Kensington Gardens. Inside were a couple of PSU's on the other side of the gate, and as we passed there was nothing more than a bit of shoe throwing and jeering. We carried on down towards the front entrance to the Embassy and our end stayed pretty much the same. All of a sudden we heard calls from one of our other serials that dozens of people tried to break through the gates to get to the embassy and were climbing the fencing, throwing anything to hand, throwing burning flags at the gate and that they needed more units to help out. Within seconds we heard the call that no police officer wants to hear "more units now, urgent assistance, we're under attack, officer down"

What had started as a several dozen turned into a hundred or so and the officers were being attacked with missiles including glass bottles, balloons filled with paint, scaffolding clips and metal poles, and a couple had been dragged into the crowd and were beaten to the floor. One officer was knocked unconscious by a scaffolding pole, two received really bad facial injuries and the other officers (male and female) were kicked and punched repeatedly until a couple of PSU's managed to get to them. At the time we were not allowed to wear our protective helmets and were still marching towards the Embassy.

Not long after we got to the Embassy gates the crowd stopped to shout and jeer at the gates (as they can't get close to the Embassy itself) and there was a bit of banner and shoe throwing. From where we were the crowd couldn't see the gates and all they knew was that they had stopped. Immediately they blamed us and lots of people were asking us "why have you stopped us marching?" It's a simple fact of numbers, 100,000 people won't fit down a street at the best of times, let alone when the head of the group has stopped because they wanted to demonstrate, we hadn't blocked anyone in at that point.

Within a couple of minutes we received the order to get our shields and helmets from the carriers after the extent of the attack and injuries received by the officers at the North Gate was fed back to the commanders. Because of the scale of the march, at least half the demonstrators hadn't seen any Police presence and to see a few of us here and there trying to get our kit gave them more than enough opportunity to shout abuse and thrown coins, cans, bottles etc as we tried to make our way through. The RVP point for the vans was changed because of the hostility we were getting to make it easier to get kitted up without having to walk half a mile or so up the road through a predominately (at that point) hostile crowd.

We got back to our posts near the front of the march to be told that a couple of shops opposite the embassy had been attacked and ransacked and that protestors had been seen stealing bottles and knives which were distributed through the crowd and subsequently thrown at the officers at the front gate. We were then informed by a serial at the gate that they had had several bottles of accelerant thrown at them which failed to ignite. At that point PSU's were brought in to contain the crowd which did effectively block them in, the hope being that they would dissipate out the other end. The confrontation became even more violent, demonstrators destroyed the fencing that was keeping the pavements clear for the shops and emergency evac units, and some of the fencing was used as a barricade to stop the Police PSU's from getting into the crowd to arrest people, specifically those from last weeks demo who had been recognised by the intelligence teams.

We then used filter cordons to try and dissipate the crowds to get the vast majority of people out of the area, this consists of a couple of ranks of officers with people still able to pass through. The people responsible for destroying the shops and throwing the missiles/accelerants were still in the crowd outside the embassy so they were contained. When information about the cordons started feeding back into the crowd a number of demonstrators tried to break out and were using anything and everything to attack the officers on the cordons, including the barriers themselves.

As the violence increased, our escalation increased, and for the first time in almost 8 years (in the Met) full deployment of longshield units was authorised, it was probably around 8pm at that point. Short of watercannon, rubber bullets and teargas, this is the highest state of force we can use in a public order situation and the decision to authorise it was not taken lightly, because it is so obviously aggressive.

Over the next several hours we had to use more cordons to force back crowds that had gathered on all sides to dissipate them as some (but not all by a long shot as there were a lot of normal demonstrators mixed in with them) of the group contained in the embassy continued attacking officers, vehicles, property, horses etc. We kept the cordons in as the protestors were taken out of the embassy cordon section individually where they were videoed for evidential purposes (to check against CCTV later) and searched for any items taken from the stores, they were then allowed to leave. As the number of people in the contained area shrunk we were able to move the cordons in further which released more officers to assist in searching so the whole group could dissipate quicker. Our cordons and teams were eventually taken down around half ten, having been in place from around four when it first started kicking off outside the embassy.

Here are a couple of vids already on youtube, make of them what you will.

The march along Bayswater Road and then Kensington High Street, just down from the embassy after we were ordered to get our full protective gear and shields.


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## mauvais (Jan 12, 2009)

Seems fairly accurate to me.

One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the number of 'legal observers' - I saw at least three. What is their role, and have they provided comment?


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## FridgeMagnet (Jan 12, 2009)

> we were NOT in possession of riot helmets or shields which were left on the carriers, although we all were in our protective gear and coveralls under the yellow jackets


Well I certainly saw a number of coppers with full helmets and shields pretty much throughout, and have pictures and video of them. Not everyone had shields - or at least, were carrying them - but on the high street _everyone_ had a helmet, and I saw shields and helmets way before that too.


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## mauvais (Jan 12, 2009)

I took this at 15:06:







Then the first picture of cops in helmets that I took was at 15:12 and it was literally the first point I saw police in helmets, just short of the embassy where the media were.






The female copper pushing back the crowd in the first one is the same person as the one in the front of the second.


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## HackneyE9 (Jan 12, 2009)

Very interesting - if genuine. Not least about the police estimate of numbers.

But what is a "longshield unit"?


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## mauvais (Jan 12, 2009)

These, I imagine. Apologies for the shit photo, it was dark and I was getting crushed by then


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## FridgeMagnet (Jan 12, 2009)

I have video of a bunch of coppers with shields and helmets running up the road way before I got to the high street - don't have it with me at the moment and unfortunately it doesn't have a timestamp on it. That might have been around 3. By the time I got to the high street 4ish they were all in helmets, and they weren't by any means being attacked; they were however encouraging people to move forwards into a blocked street. In fact it was all quite matey, and the coppers behind the barricades blocking entrance to the empty pavement were joking around with the "young males", who were joking back.


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## stat (Jan 12, 2009)

soam said:


> [...] it was probably around 8pm at that point [...] Over the next several hours we had to use more cordons to force back crowds that had gathered on all sides



can anyone else corroborate this claim that "crowds" were pushing against police lines past 11pm?

sniffs of billy-bullshit to me.  best way to tell a lie is to sandwich it between two truths...


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## mauvais (Jan 12, 2009)

That last one was at 16:07 and that's when the barriers started getting thrown and a lot of people started to disperse, except we were all stuck and couldn't really go anywhere. I'm glad either side didn't try anything really stupid like a surge in either direction as we'd have all been fucked at that point.


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## quimcunx (Jan 12, 2009)

It seems like a reasonable account.  Obviously I was only in one place.  I think the South Gate of Kensington Gardens was where I was when I got crushed.  He doesn't seem to have anything about that, that matches what happened to me.


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## Fedayn (Jan 12, 2009)

Interesting read, it's rare you actually get a non media 'mediated' police account. Well worth circulating widely imho.


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## Dan U (Jan 12, 2009)

a lot of that post rings true with what i saw.

i was with the group which broke off from the front of the march and it did indeed get held back several times after pleas from community leader types and waited for stewarding to catch up. 

the police did take full control of the front of the demo again along Bayswater Road and waited for everything to bunch up again






i got out of the cordon at 7 so don't know what happened after. i certainly got filmed and searched

long shields i guess?


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## quimcunx (Jan 12, 2009)

mauvais said:


> Seems fairly accurate to me.
> 
> One thing that hasn't been mentioned is the number of 'legal observers' - I saw at least three. What is their role, and have they provided comment?



A friend of mine was chatting to an observer who was taking notes. Apparently a human rights lawyer.  She gave her her business card and said if there was anyone who had any abuses to report feel free to get in touch. 

Other than that I don't know.


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## laptop (Jan 12, 2009)

A cop? said:
			
		

> Crucially, we were told that despite the fact that nearly every march relating to the Gaza/Israel situation had experienced violence, this was not sufficient evidence to suggest that THIS march would become violent.



Figures. 

Brass are aware that catwalking out the Imperial Stormtrooper look guarantees a ruck.

Plod doesn't believe brass.


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## winjer (Jan 13, 2009)

soam said:


> What had started as a several dozen turned into a hundred or so and the officers were being attacked with missiles including glass bottles, balloons filled with paint, scaffolding clips and metal poles, and a couple had been dragged into the crowd and were beaten to the floor. One officer was knocked unconscious by a scaffolding pole, two received really bad facial injuries and the other officers (male and female) were kicked and punched repeatedly until a couple of PSU's managed to get to them.


Apart from this bit, which seems to be secondhand info, and some of the timings - well before 8pm most people had been dispersed except the central bubble - it all sounds reasonably accurate. The same blogger has posted accurate information before.


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## Kid_Eternity (Jan 13, 2009)

FridgeMagnet said:


> Well I certainly saw a number of coppers with full helmets and shields pretty much throughout, and have pictures and video of them. Not everyone had shields - or at least, were carrying them - but on the high street _everyone_ had a helmet, and I saw shields and helmets way before that too.



From what I know it's standard practice at these things to have police down side streets already suited up. Hence the speed at which riot police always appear.


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## winjer (Jan 13, 2009)

It isn't, hence the slow speed at which riot police normally appear.

However, it's becoming standard practice in Kensington at the moment, even the 'against police brutality' picket of the police station on Sunday evening had three vans of suited up cops watching over it, there must have been at most 20 people there.


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## brix (Jan 14, 2009)

Does anyone know what website the blog in the OP came from?  I'd like to read more by this guy.


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## mauvais (Jan 14, 2009)

http://sheepdogsandwolves.blogspot.com/ - a lot of it is probably... disagreeable... especially the comments, but it's worth a read.


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## brix (Jan 14, 2009)

mauvais said:


> http://sheepdogsandwolves.blogspot.com/ - a lot of it is probably... disagreeable... especially the comments, but it's worth a read.




Thanks for that mauvais.

Will read it with genuine interest.


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## Andy the Don (Jan 14, 2009)

mauvais said:


> http://sheepdogsandwolves.blogspot.com/ - a lot of it is probably... disagreeable... especially the comments, but it's worth a read.


 
A very interesting and funny blog obviously written for police officers but even with the jargon enough for us civilians. The glossary v. funny.. "Shufflers", crackheads looking to score and a "furry exocet" is a police dog. What was illuminating was that they admitted they police demonstrations with kid gloves compared with the much more pro-active policing at football matches.


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## soam (Jan 14, 2009)

It is an excellent blog - his piece on the Policing of the Climate Camp is also well worth a read. Police Officers are not actually allowed to blog and many have been shut down by professional standards departments over the last few years.

I find them interesting on loads of levels. I think that it is amazing how within hours of the events on Saturday there were accounts online from both sides of the fence. I also credit some of the police bloggers for really changing my perspective on the Police, on how they see their job, and the situations and events that they deal with. Some of the stuff I read on them is just quality writing, indeed several bloggers have had books published following on from the success of their writing online.

Its also interesting how many of them read sites like Indymedia - if only just to see flix of themselves 'in action!'


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## Padcore (Jan 14, 2009)

mauvais said:


> I took this at 15:06:
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Could do with helmets like that when I'm working for the council.  Strimming grass with the visors we are provided with is fucking dangerous.  Sore and very dog shitty in the eyesy


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## Roadkill (Jan 15, 2009)

Seems pretty fair to me, and it is interesting to read the police point of view.  Where we were, at the back of the march, the police were pretty good natured and only later on, when the front of the march had got to the embassy and it was all back up along the Bayswater Road that things began to get a bit more aggro.  Even so, the OB handled that okay as far as I could see.  We didn't get to the embassy, so can't really comment on what went on there.


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## SpookyFrank (Jan 15, 2009)

> What had started as a several dozen turned into a hundred or so and the officers were being attacked with missiles including glass bottles, balloons filled with paint, scaffolding clips and metal poles, and a couple had been dragged into the crowd and were beaten to the floor. One officer was knocked unconscious by a scaffolding pole, two received really bad facial injuries and the other officers (male and female) were kicked and punched repeatedly until a couple of PSU's managed to get to them. *At the time we were not allowed to wear our protective helmets* and were still marching towards the Embassy.



When was the last time a bunch of coppers allowed protesters to don padded helmets before cracking them about the heads with big poles? I don't believe in violence for it's own sake, but nor do I feel at all sorry for any copper who suffers that which he is prepared to inflict on others.


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## discokermit (Jan 15, 2009)

mundane/rubbish/mundane/rubbish.

the blog sounds awful.


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## soam (Jan 15, 2009)

discokermit said:


> mundane/rubbish/mundane/rubbish.
> 
> the blog sounds awful.




indeed.
Have you read it?


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## Udo Erasmus (Jan 16, 2009)

*Cops mug pensioner*

A report from a 79 year old councillor from South Wales who was beaten with truncheons, knocked unconscious and then kicked while on the ground. Police prevented medics who were trying to help him



> 100,000 people from all over Britain joined today's march in London, to protest at the Israeli Embassy against the continuing relentless attacks on Gaza's civilian population. Ray Davies, 79 year old Vice Chair of CND Cymru, sustained head injuries, concussion and cuts when he was trapped with hundreds of others against the Embassy gates by Metropolitan Police.
> 
> The march had gone peacefully until it reached the Embassy. Many shoes were thrown over the fence in a symbolic gesture of defiance, but the police claimed that the shoes were aimed at them , and began to lash out at the crowd. Three rows of police, in full riot gear and with heavy shields penned a section of the protesters in an alleyway beside the Israeli Embassy. Ray tried to negotiate between the protesters and the police; he explained that the police had not been the target of the shoes, and asked to be allowed to pass through in order to deliver a letter to the ambassador calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
> 
> ...


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## Udo Erasmus (Jan 17, 2009)

> A serving police Officer has been put on restricted duties for alleged misconduct while participating in a protest outside the Israeli embassy.
> 
> It is alleged the Community Support Officer - off duty at the time -intervened when she saw nine police officers assaulting a young man.
> 
> A Stop The War Coalition spokesman said the serving female officer had put in an official complaint against the Met.




http://www.teletext.co.uk/news/nati...4af6668d14ad5b/Met+row+over+embassy+demo.aspx


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## laptop (Jan 17, 2009)

Udo Erasmus said:


> http://www.teletext.co.uk/news/nati...4af6668d14ad5b/Met+row+over+embassy+demo.aspx




Bizarre - makes no sense at all (the fact that a CSO isn't by definition a serving police officer rules out one possible story...)

Got to be a Press Association story rewritten by the trainee... not on www.ananova.com ... ah:



> Press Association
> 
> *PCSO placed on restricted duties
> *
> ...



So she was a PCSO and has been suspended after allegedly stopping the Imperial Troopers kicking shit out of someone? While allegedly exercising her democratic right to object to war crimes?

Re-think of entire pseudoplod scheme follows shortly


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## audiotech (Aug 10, 2010)

More on this from those charged, including Jake Smith being interviewed:


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## likesfish (Aug 31, 2010)

can see the plod point of view some demos stand a good chance of kicking off regardless of if you wear nice helemts or the full kit.
 coppers tend to be cycnical getting between demostraters and the israeli embassy of course its going to kick off


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## Streathamite (Aug 31, 2010)

It would also be mioghty helpful if the OP provider gave us the link whence the dibble account of thngs came from


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## DaveCinzano (Aug 31, 2010)

http://sheepdogsandwolves.blogspot.com/2009/01/so-who-started-it.html


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