Source: New.TheCradle.co
French police have banned two rallies scheduled for 12 October in solidarity with Palestinians being slaughtered in the Gaza Strip by Israeli forces.
The protest ban was implemented “taking into account the risk of disturbance to public order,” according to French media citing police officials.
The decision was taken two days after security forces violently repressed a pro-Palestine rally in France’s second city of Lyon, using tear gas and batons to break it up.
The police attacks and bans on pro-Palestine rallies come as French Justice Minister Eric Dupond-Morett issued a circular to the courts saying that any form of public support for Operation Al-Aqsa Flood and the Gaza resistance be prosecuted for advocating terrorism.
“Remarks which tend to encourage others to pass a favorable judgment on an offense classified as terrorist … even uttered within the framework of a debate of general interest [are] constitutive of the apology of terrorism,” the circular reads.
He alleges that supporting the battle for Palestinian liberation would result in “an increase in anti-Semitic offenses.”
“Any attacks on the physical integrity of people from the Jewish community, damage to places of worship, or even comments likely to qualify as an apology for terrorism,” he added.
His remarks echo those of UK Home Secretary Suella Braverman, who called on Tuesday for British police to deem using flags of Palestine and any chant or symbol associated with the Palestinian cause as “hate speech.”…