Plymouth WW2 bomb found in garden detonated at sea - BBC

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By Chloe Parkman & Chris Ellis

BBC News

A 500kg (1,102lb) German World War Two bomb that forced the evacuation of thousands of people in Plymouth has been detonated at sea.

The unexploded device was found in a garden on St Michael Avenue on Tuesday, sparking four days of disruption.

On Friday police closed roads and rail and bus services were stopped as the bomb was transported 1.4 miles (2.3km) through the city's streets.

The device was taken by boat beyond the breakwater and detonated at 21:51 GMT.

No further details of the disposal have been given.

Earlier on Friday, Lt Col Rob Swan said the bomb would be taken to a depth of at least 14 metres (46 feet) before a diver would place a charge on the bomb to ignite it.

The disposal of the device marks the end of huge disruption for thousands of people living in Plymouth, with the Ministry of Defence describing the evacuation operation as one of the largest since the end of World War Two.

A temporary 300m (984ft) cordon was put in place on Friday afternoon to allow experts to transport the bomb from the Keyham area of the city in a military convoy to the Torpoint Ferry slipway.

Plymouth City Council said 10,320 people and 4,300 properties fell within the cordon.

Residents in the area were asked to leave their homes for about three hours from 14:00 GMT as a safety precaution.

A number of roads were closed and rail and bus services were stopped as the bomb was transported through the city.

The cordon was lifted shortly after 17:30.

FPS Images

Resident Vicky Brotherton said it had been "a very anxious time for us" and she was "very relieved" to be home after spending the past four days in a caravan in Cornwall.

"Just a massive thank you to everyone who has been involved to end this safely - really impressed with His Majesty's forces."

Resident Jeannette Ssentongo said she was glad the bomb had been moved.

"Every morning I was at work checking my phone," she said. "It's been a worry."

Matt Keeble/PA Wire

Keyham resident Christine Jolley, who lives on St Aubyn Avenue, said the past few days had been "very stressful".

"It's been terrible - we were one of the first ones out Tuesday morning and we just left the house, we didn't bring anything with us.

"We were allowed back in the evening to get my husband's tablets and that's it really."

Plymouth City Council leader Tudor Evans thanked everyone involved in the removal of the bomb.

He said it had brought out a "war-like spirit" in the city.

"I think it is fair to say that the last few days will go down in history for Plymouth," Mr Evans said.

"This war-time bomb has really brought out war-time spirit, people coming together to really support each other and whilst it has been really tough - we got through it."

The council said the Life Centre leisure centre had been used as an emergency rest centre for people who had been evacuated.

'Bravery and fortitude'

Defence Secretary Grant Shapps praised the "bravery and fortitude" of those involved in the "highly complex operation" and the "patience and cooperation" of members of the public.

In a statement on Friday, he said: "I would like to express my thanks to all our personnel... who worked both night and day this week to keep the public safe and minimise the risk of damage.

"The success of this operation is testament to the level of skill and expertise across our Armed Forces, as well as the bravery and fortitude of our personnel when faced with high-risk situations and working under extreme pressure."

The MoD said about 30 of the Armed Forces' most experienced bomb disposal specialists worked around the clock since Tuesday to assess the condition of the bomb.

Staff at The Box, a cultural space and museum in the city, believe the explosive fell during one of the heaviest nights of bombing in World War Two.

Using "bomb maps" from the war, the museum said it was dropped on 22 or 23 April, 1941. According to the museum, some 1,362 bombs exploded in the city during the war.

Former army bomb disposal expert Kim Hughes told Radio 4's Today programme on Saturday that there are many reasons why the bomb would not have exploded in all this time, including "faulting fusing systems" and "the way in which the airdrop munition impacted the ground".

Mr Hughes said the MoD experts would probably have assessed the fusing systems on the item, using X-ray, to gain a better understanding of the risks before transporting the bomb to sea.

He says the army, the navy and other first-responders "smashed it [the disposal operation] out of the park".

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Related Topics

• Plymouth
• Devon

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• Plymouth City Council

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2024-02-24 10:33:04Z
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Labour calls for Liz Truss and Lee Anderson to lose Conservative whip - The Guardian

Labour has called for Liz Truss and Lee Anderson to lose the Conservative whip over media appearances that have also caused anger within Tory ranks.

In a letter to the prime minister, Rishi Sunak, on Friday, the shadow paymaster general, Jonathan Ashworth, said “egregious” remarks made by the pair “cannot go unchecked or unchallenged”.

Truss had used a talk at the Conservative Political Action Conference (Cpac) in the US to claim her efforts to cut taxes were “sabotaged” by the “administrative state and the deep state”.

The former prime minister, whose disastrous 2022 mini-budget unleashed economic chaos, later took part in an interview with the former Trump chief strategist Steve Bannon and remained silent as he hailed the far-right figure Tommy Robinson a “hero”.

The senior Tory MP Sajid Javid was among those to criticise her for not challenging the comment, writing in a post on X: “I’d hope every MP would confront such a statement head on. Liz should really know better.”

Javid also hit out at Anderson after the former deputy Conservative chairman appeared to suggest in an appearance on GB News that the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, had “given our capital away” to “Islamists”.

The former chancellor said the remarks were “ridiculous”, while Labour said they showed “appalling racism and Islamophobia”.

The Conservative peer Gavin Barwell, who was Theresa May’s chief of staff in No 10, described the comment as a “despicable slur”.

Sunak is being pressed by Labour to “show some leadership” and take action over the remarks.

Ashworth said that a failure to do so would amount to “allowing the divisive, deluded and dangerous views of the far-right into mainstream British politics and continue to give credibility to such a degradation of British institutions and cultural life on the international stage”.

Truss had claimed in her speech that Conservatives were “now operating in what is a hostile environment” and that “leftwing elites” would be “aided and abetted by our enemies in China, Iran and Russia”.

When interviewed by Bannon after her speech, Truss also said she was willing to work to change the Conservative party with Nigel Farage, the Reform UK founder and former Ukip leader.

She suggested that Bannon, who faces fraud charges in New York, could “come over to Britain and sort out Britain”.

In his letter to Mr Sunak, Ashworth wrote: “For a senior politician to engage in spreading such blatant conspiracy theories is incredibly damaging to our democracy, our institutions and social cohesion.”

He added: “For a former prime minister to make such remarks, while on an international visit to a country with whom the UK shares a special relationship which upholds liberal values, is an unforgivable lowering of the office of prime minister, which lessens the United Kingdom’s standing in the world and needs to be acted upon.

“It’s time to show some leadership and take on the extremists in your party. Liz Truss and Lee Anderson must no longer sit as Conservative MPs. Their words cannot go unchecked or unchallenged.”

Downing Street has been contacted for comment.

Truss resigned in October 2022 after the fallout from her botched financial statement, becoming the country’s shortest-serving prime minister after just 49 days in office.

At Cpac, she shared a stage with Trump, whose presidential campaign she all but directly endorsed, and Farage.

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Royal family shares new video of King Charles - Geo News

King Charles said, "I've had so many wonderful messages and cards. It's reduced me to tears most of the time."

Royal family shares new video of King Charles

Royal family has released a new video of King Charles, reading some of the 7,000 messages of support received from around the world since his cancer diagnosis was announced.

The palace shared the video on X, formerly Twitter and Instagram handles, and wrote: “Since The King’s cancer diagnosis was announced, His Majesty has received thousands of messages of support and good wishes from around the world.”

The King has since had a chance to read a wide selection of this correspondence.

The statement further reads: “Thank you to all those who have written in.”

It further says, “As His Majesty has said, ‘All those who have been affected by cancer will know such kind thoughts are the greatest comfort and encouragement’.”

Read More: King Charles gets emotional for THIS reason after cancer diagnosis

The fresh video came after the monarch disclosed that he got emotional and has been 'reduced to tears' over response to his cancer diagnosis.

King Charles told the Prime Minister, "I've had so many wonderful messages and cards. It's reduced me to tears most of the time."

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Shamima Begum loses bid to regain UK citizenship - BBC

By Andre Rhoden-Paul & Dominic Casciani, legal correspondent

BBC News

Shamima Begum has lost a Court of Appeal decision to regain her UK citizenship.

The ruling means the 24-year-old must remain in Syria. The government stripped her citizenship on national security grounds in 2019.

Ms Begum left London nine years ago aged 15 to travel to Syria and join Islamic State group, or IS.

The ruling by three appeal judges was unanimous. It could still be challenged in the Supreme Court by Ms Begum.

Her solicitor, Daniel Furner said that her legal team was "not going to stop fighting until she does get justice and until she is safely back home".

However the judges wholly dismissed all of Ms Begum's arguments - a highly significant rejection that could affect her ability to gain a full appeal at the Supreme Court.

Lady Chief Justice Baroness Carr said: "It could be argued the decision in Ms Begum's case was harsh. It could also be argued that Ms Begum is the author of her own misfortune.

"But it is not for this court to agree or disagree with either point of view.

"Our only task is to assess whether the deprivation decision was unlawful. We have concluded it was not, and the appeal is dismissed."

• Who is Shamima Begum and how can you lose your citizenship?

Ms Begum's lawyers went to the Court of Appeal after losing a hearing last year. They argued that the Home Office's decision to remove her citizenship was unlawful, in part because British officials failed to properly consider whether she was a potential victim of trafficking.

Sir James Eadie KC, for the Home Office, said the "key feature" in the case was national security.

"The fact that someone is radicalised, and may have been manipulated, is not inconsistent with the assessment that they pose a national security risk," he said.

The ruling represents a substantial victory for the government and averts a potential legal crisis: were the decision to be reversed, home secretaries would in future need to balance national security considerations with questions of whether someone is a victim.

Responding to the court's decision, the Home Office said it was "pleased" at Friday's ruling, adding that its "priority remains maintaining the safety and security of the UK".

A spokeswoman for the prime minister said the government would "always take the strongest possible action to protect our national security", adding that it never took decisions to remove citizenship lightly.

Outside court, however, Ms Begum's solicitors said that it was very likely they would ask the Supreme Court to get involved. A response however could take up to a year.

Gareth Peirce, of her legal team, said the UK was under a moral duty to take Ms Begum back, as other nations had with citizens found in Syria.

Metropolitan Police

Ms Begum, born in the UK to parents of Bangladeshi heritage, was one of three east London girls who travelled to Syria in 2015 to support the IS group. She left with her friends Kadiza Sultana and Amira Abase.

Begum lived under IS rule for more than three years. She married a Dutch member of IS, who is currently held in a Kurdish detention centre, and lived in Raqqa, once a stronghold of the group. She had three children, all of whom have died.

She was found in al-Roj camp in northern Syria in 2019 following the defeat of IS.

Ms Sultana is thought to have died when a house was blown up. The fate of Ms Abase is unknown.

Begum has admitted knowingly joining a proscribed organisation. She said that she was "ashamed" to have done so and regretted it.

The Shamima Begum Story podcast is available on BBC Sounds and a feature length documentary of the same name, is on BBC iPlayer (UK only).

Related Topics

• Shamima Begum case

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Typical energy bill to fall £238 a year from April under new price cap - BBC

Getty Images

By Kevin Peachey

Cost of living correspondent

The typical annual energy bill will fall to £1,690 from April to the lowest for two years under the new price cap set by the regulator.

It means a drop of £238 a year, or around £20 a month, for a household using a typical amount of energy.

Lower wholesale prices paid by suppliers have led to the cut in the price cap for April to June, which will bring some relief to billpayers.

But campaigners said bills are still high and many will struggle to pay.

Energy prices are now at their lowest level since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. However, even after April's drop, bills will remain well above pre-pandemic levels.

The regulator's price cap affects 29 million households in England, Wales and Scotland. Rules are different in Northern Ireland, where prices are also falling.

Ofgem sets the maximum amount suppliers can charge for each unit of gas and electricity but not the total bill - so if you use more, you will pay more.

Specifically, in England, Wales and Scotland:

• Gas prices will be capped at 6p per kilowatt hour (kWh), and electricity at 24p per kWh. That compares to the current gas price of 7.42p per kWh and 28.62p per kWh for electricity
• Households on prepayment meters will pay slightly less than those on direct debit, with a typical bill of £1,643
• Those who pay their bills every three months by cash or cheque will pay more, with a typical bill of £1,796
• Standing charges - a fixed daily charge covering the costs of connecting to a supply - have risen to 60p a day for electricity and 31p a day for gas, although they vary by region

The regulator will add £28 to everyone's bill over a year to cover the cost of dealing with £3.1bn of debt that customers owe to suppliers.

• What is happening to energy bills?

Energy firms will contact customers before April to inform them of the new prices.

However, whether customers' direct debits fall automatically may depend on whether they have a surplus balance with their energy supplier. If people feel they are paying too much they should contact their supplier to discuss cutting payments.

Dame Clare Moriarty, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said: "It's good news that the cost of energy is falling, but the impact of sky-high prices will be felt for years to come."

'I wear as many clothes as possible'

Families - like mum Sam, from Greater Manchester, and her sons Reuben, eight, and Jenson, 10 - have been working hard to keep bills down by cutting their energy usage.

"I put the heating on in the morning, just to give it a little blast when the boys get up and then maybe at the evening time just for an hour, but we just try and cut back as much as possible. And I wear as many clothes, coats and things, as I can especially when I'm working from home.

"The boys are very aware of it because we talk openly about it," she said. "That's why, as much as they do think I'm always nagging them, it's just about trying to save money and save on energy."

She said that the lower prices would take the pressure off and give "a little bit of room in the budget" but they would continue to save energy as much as they can.

The fall in energy prices has raised the prospect of suppliers trying to attract new customers by offering improved deals.

Richard Neudegg from online price comparison website USwitch said: "We expect there to be increased competition on the market now prices are set to fall in April."

The vast majority of people pay by direct debit, with payments smoothed out over the year. However, those who pay via prepayment meter - so pay for energy as they use it - would have benefitted more had the cut come over the winter.

Ofgem chief executive Jonathan Brearley said that by April, energy bills for the average household will have fallen by £690 since the peak of the crisis.

"But there are still big issues that we must tackle head-on to ensure we build a system that's more resilient for the long term and fairer to customers," he said.

Speaking to the BBC's Today programme, Mr Brearley said the regulator was looking at standing charges - a fixed daily amount which covers the costs of connecting to a supply.

There has been criticism about increases to these charges, and some have argued they should be abolished.

But Mr Brearley said the issues were complex: "The analysis we've done says there's a large group who are made somewhat better off [by abolishing it], but there's a big but slightly smaller group who are made significantly worse off."

Support wound down

In the winter of 2022-23, overall energy prices were high and rises would have been bigger had it not been for the government's Energy Price Guarantee limiting the typical bill to £2,500.

Each household also received £400 of support over six months, but the government did not repeat the discount this winter.

Cost-of-living payments seem set to end following a final instalment this month, and no plans have been announced for a continuation of the Household Support Fund, which councils use to offer direct support.

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt could choose to address future support when he presents his Budget on 6 March.

A spokesman for the Department for Energy Security said: "We've halved inflation and energy prices are now significantly lower than their peak - but we recognise the challenges families are still facing."

Labour's shadow energy secretary, Ed Miliband, said: "Whilst it is welcome the price cap is coming down, the truth is that energy bills are still far too high for hardworking families."

What can I do if I can't afford my energy bill?

• Check your direct debit: Your monthly payment is based on your estimated energy use for the year. Your supplier can reduce your bill if your actual use is less than the estimation.
• Pay what you can: If you can't meet your direct debit or quarterly payments, ask your supplier for an "able to pay plan" based on what you can afford.
• Claim what you are entitled to: Check you are claiming all the benefits you can. The independent MoneyHelper website has a useful guide.

Read more here

The BBC News Channel will be answering your questions from 12:30GMT today about the energy price cap.

This is your chance to ask us anything and we'll answer as many questions as we can.

Send us your questions by emailing: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk.

You can also send your questions in the following ways:

• WhatsApp: +44 7756 165803
• Tweet: @BBC_HaveYourSay
• Email: YourQuestions@bbc.co.uk
• Or fill out the form below
• Please read our terms & conditions and privacy policy

If you are reading this page and can't see the form you will need to visit the mobile version of the BBC website to submit your question or send them via email to YourQuestions@bbc.co.uk. Please include your name, age and location with any question you send in.

Related Topics

• Money
• Personal finance
• Energy industry
• Cost of Living

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2024-02-23 10:36:52Z
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Cleverly backs Lindsay Hoyle over Gaza ceasefire vote - follow live - The Independent

SNP and Conservative MPs walk out of the Commons over the speaker’s handling of the Gaza vote

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Rishi Sunak has said it is “unacceptable” for protesters to demonstrate outside MPs’ homes.

Speaking during a tour of North Wales on Friday, the prime minister said: “It’s simply unacceptable for intimidation or aggressive behaviour to threaten our parliamentary democracy and our freedom of expression.”

He added that he is giving police more power to clamp down on “intimidation and aggressive behaviour”.

James Cleverly also vowed to be vigilant against threats and pressure on MPs after Sir Lindsay Hoyle argued his actions in the Gaza ceasefire vote were motivated by concern about security.

The home secretary told Sky News: “I’ve not had any specific threats brought to me, but we will stay constantly vigilant.

“But the point I would make is ultimately Members of Parliament and indeed elected officials through all layers of government have got to act without fear or favour.”

It comes after Sir Lindsay broke with convention on Wednesday to allow a vote on Labour’s Gaza ceasefire amendment to an SNP motion calling for an “immediate ceasefire” in Gaza and Israel.

Almost 70 Conservative and SNP MPs signed a no-confidence motion in Sir Lindsay in the aftermath.

1708687316

Sunak optimistic as ‘economy has turned the corner'

Rishi Sunak has said the public are “feeling that the economy has turned the corner” and “things are getting better”.

Taking questions after a speech at the Welsh Conservative conference in Llandudno on Friday, the Prime Minister said: “There is a palpable sense out there, regardless of what Keir Starmer might want to say because he’s always keen to talk down Britain, I can tell actually on the ground people are, since the beginning of this year, feeling that the economy has turned the corner.

“They do see those green shoots. They can see that things are getting better.

“Inflation has been more than halved, mortgage rates starting to come down, wages have been rising for six, seven months in a row now.

“We just saw today ... energy bills significantly down. Consumer confidence, business confidence, again, survey out yesterday, highest it’s been in years. Businesses like yours feeling better about the future.

“And that is why it is so important that we stick to our plan.”

(Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 11:21

1708686337

Cleverly denies UK’s borders are insecure following Brexit

James Cleverly denied that the UK’s borders have been left insecure since Brexit.

The Home Secretary said the UK was a member of EU institutions including border agency Frontex before the EU referendum.

Asked whether the vote to leave had left Britain’s borders insecure, he told LBC Radio: “That’s not the case at all.

“Leaving the European Union meant we were able to define our own immigration policy...

“We are not going back into an organisation. We’re making an agreement with an organisation that we have left.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 11:05

1708685017

Police ‘need powers to disperse threatening protests outside Parliament’

Police should have the powers to “disperse” protests around Parliament, MPs’ offices and council chambers that they deem to be threatening, the Government’s political violence tsar has said.

Baron Walney, the UK Government’s adviser on political violence and disruption, said the “aggressive intimidation of MPs” by “mobs” was being “mistaken” for an “expression of democracy”.

The comments by Lord Walney come as the issue of MP safety has once again reared its head this week following a chaotic debate on the Israel-Hamas war.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 10:43

1708683896

Starmer insists he did not threaten Lindsay Hoyle ‘in any way’ over Gaza vote

Sir Keir Starmer said he did not threaten Sir Lindsay Hoyle “in any way” to ensure Labour got its way on a vote on Gaza on Wednesday night (21 February). The Labour leader insisted he “simply urged to ensure we have the broadest possible debate” as he spoke to reporters the following day. Sir Linsday has faced calls to resign after taking an exceptional decision to allow multiple Commons votes on the Israel-Hamas conflict. Sir Keir has been accused by Penny Mordaunt of using the Speaker for political gain over the vote. The Commons leader accused him of putting “the interests of the Labour party before the interests of the British people”.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 10:24

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Cleverly backs Hoyle as almost 70 MPs sign call for Speaker to quit

Home Secretary James Cleverly gave his personal backing to Commons Speaker Sir Lindsay Hoyle despite criticism of his handling of a Gaza ceasefire debate.

The Speaker gained the support of the senior Cabinet minister even as he faced continued pressure to step down.

Nearly 70 MPs, more than a tenth of the Commons, have signed a motion proposed by senior Conservative William Wragg expressing no confidence in him after Wednesday’s SNP Opposition Day vote descended into chaos.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 10:04

1708681394

Cleverly does not ‘always agree with everything’ Braverman says after former home secretary claims ‘Islamists are in charge now'

James Cleverly said he did not “always agree with everything” his predecessor Suella Braverman says after she claimed “Islamists, the extremists and the antisemites are in charge now”.

The Home Secretary told LBC: “She’s clearly expressing frustrations that she’s felt whilst she was in this role.

“And I understand that. And she and I remain close friends - that doesn’t mean to say I always agree with everything she’s saying.

“But it is absolutely the case that we must make sure that we crack down on extremist behaviour, it’s absolutely the case that we must not let our democracy be distorted through fear or intimidation.”

Asked about her comment that “turning a blind eye to fanatics has got us into this terrible situation”, Mr Cleverly said: “I’m not sure who she’s referring to when she’s talking about turning a blind eye, because I certainly haven’t turned a blind eye since I’ve been the Home Secretary.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 09:43

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‘Nonsense’ for protesters to stand outside MPs’ homes- Cleverly

It is “nonsense” for protesters outside MPs’ homes to claim they are not seeking to intimidate, James Cleverly has said.

“Someone saying: ‘I’m standing outside someone’s private house in numbers, but we don’t seek to intimidate’, I’m sorry, that’s clearly nonsense,” the Home Secretary told the BBC’s Today programme.

“Where a mob of people are outside someone’s private residence, clearly with the intention of distorting their future votes, that is unacceptable and we expect the police to deal with it.”

He said police already have the powers that they need to stop protests outside MPs’ homes and offices, “and we also want them to understand that they have our backing when they use those powers”.

“The only thing that politicians should fear is the ballot box,” Mr Cleverly said.

“It’s incredibly important... that we do not allow a situation to be created where people cannot vote with their belief and conscience because of fear of reprisals.

“The ballot box is where people and organisations should make their views clear.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 09:24

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Sunak says it is ‘unacceptable’ to threaten democracy in response to protests outside MPs’ homes

It is “unacceptable” for intimidation to threaten democracy, Rishi Sunak has said.

Speaking during a tour of North Wales on Friday, the Prime Minister was asked about protests outside MPs’ homes.

He told reporters: “I think MPs’ safety is incredibly important. And it’s right that in our society, democracy needs to be able to function smoothly. People need to be able to raise their views and debate things without the fear of being intimidated or indeed attacked.

“And that’s why we’re giving police more powers to clamp down on protests.

“It’s simply unacceptable for intimidation or aggressive behaviour to threaten our parliamentary democracy and our freedom of expression.

“And some of the scenes we’ve been seeing in recent months, particularly antisemitic behaviour, are appalling and unacceptable. That’s why we’re giving the police more powers and I expect them to use them to make sure we clamp down on all of this.”

(Peter Byrne/PA Wire)

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 09:09

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Cleverly says politicians should not make decisions based on threats

Politicians should not make decisions based on “fear or favour,” James Cleverly has said.

After the Speaker argued his actions in the Gaza ceasefire vote were motivated by concern about MPs’ security, the Home Secretary said he was “conscious that there has been increased pressure” on parliamentarians.

He told Sky News: “I’ve not had any specific threats brought to me, but we will stay constantly vigilant.

“But the point I would make is ultimately Members of Parliament and indeed elected officials through all layers of Government have got to act without fear or favour.

“They need to be defended and we’re absolutely determined to do that.”

The Cabinet minister continued: “We should not be changing our procedures in response to threats or intimidation. That would indicate that the threats and the intimidation is working. That’s the opposite of the message that we want to send.”

He added that “people who make decisions in Government at whatever level are doing so based on their judgment, based on the information, based on their beliefs, not based on fear of reprisals.”

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 08:51

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Home secretary will no ‘impinge on police operational decisions’

The Home Secretary said he would not “impinge on operational decisions” by the police when asked whether officers should have stopped a controversial pro-Palestinian message being projected onto Parliament.

The phrase “from the river to the sea” was reportedly beamed onto the building on Wednesday as Gaza protesters descended on Westminster.

James Cleverly told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “It’s very difficult for me to second-guess the operational nature of this.

“I don’t know where those images were projected from. I don’t know how easy it would have been for the police officers to get there.

“But the fact is they are deeply, deeply offensive words... The implication is the eradication of the state of Israel. And both personally and as a Government, we completely reject that.”

He said the operational nature of policing was a matter for chief constables, the Police Commissioner Sir Mark Rowley and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan.

(AFP via Getty Images)

Maryam Zakir-Hussain23 February 2024 08:47

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2024-02-23 11:05:37Z
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Shamima Begum loses appeal against removal of British citizenship - The Guardian

Shamima Begum, who left Britain as a schoolgirl to join Islamic State, has lost an appeal against the decision to remove her British citizenship.

Begum travelled to Syria in 2015 at the age of 15. Her citizenship was revoked on national security grounds shortly after she was found in a Syrian refugee camp in February 2019.

Last year, the now 24-year-old lost a challenge against the decision at the special immigration appeals commission.

Begum’s lawyers brought a bid to overturn this decision at the court of appeal, with the Home Office opposing the challenge.

All three appeal judges ruled against her on Friday.

Dame Sue Carr, the head of the court of appeal, said the judges unanimously dismissed Begum’s appeal: “It could be argued that the decision in Miss Begum’s case was harsh.

“It could also be argued that Miss Begum is the author of her own misfortune. But it is not for this court to agree or disagree with either point of view.

“Our only task is to assess whether the deprivation decision was unlawful. We have concluded it was not and the appeal is dismissed.”

Begum’s legal team put forward five grounds, arguing that Siac was wrong to reject her claim that then home secretary Sajid Javid was wrong to deprive her citizenship in 2019. But the judges ruled against her in each case, including concluding that a public sector equality duty did not apply in the event of national security.

The judges also concluded that Javid had considered whether Begum was a victim of child trafficking, as her legal team had argued, and that the question of whether she posed a danger to UK national security was a judgment he was entitled to make.

Nor, the judges held, was the then minister required to consider whether she would be effectively rendered stateless because there was no possibility of her returning to Bangladesh from where her parents originate.

Begum’s solicitor, Daniel Furner, said that they would seek to fight on. He said he had promised her and the government that “we are not going to stop fighting until she does get justice and until she is safely back home”.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “We are pleased that the Court of Appeal has found in favour of our position in this case.

“Our priority remains maintaining the safety and security of the UK and we will robustly defend any decision made in doing so”.

Maya Foa, the director of Repreive, an NGO that represents British women detained in northeast Syria said: “This whole episode shames ministers who would rather bully a child victim of trafficking than acknowledge the UK’s responsibilities” and argued that the policy of depriving citizenship is “a terrible, unsustainable policy designed to score cheap political points”.

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2024-02-23 11:21:00Z
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