Zack Polanski breaks silence as he erupts at Labour over Palestine march threat

 Zack Polanski has hit out at Labour after Sir Keir Starmer threatened to crack down on pro-Palestine protests. The Prime Minister said the Government needed to "go further" following the stabbing of two Jewish men in Golders Green in a Downing Street statement yesterday.

Meanwhile, the Metropolitan Police is reviewing whether future marches can go ahead after the UK terrorism threat level was raised to "severe" after the stabbings. London has seen regular pro-Palestine protests since the latest round of the Gaza conflict erupted in 2023, with demonstrators accused of antisemitic chanting or holding antisemitic signs.

But the Green Party leader vowed that he would oppose any new restrictions.

Mr Polanski told The Independent: "It is an outrage that this increasingly authoritarian government would now seek to use the pain of the Jewish community to seek further restrictions on the rights to peaceful protest.

"The Green Party will fight any restrictions on peaceful protest, whatever the cause, every step of the way."

It comes after the Green leader was criticised by the head of the Met Police after he appeared to suggest officers were too heavy-handed with the Golders Green suspect.

Mr Polanski retweeted an X post accusing officers of "repeatedly and violently kicking a mentally ill man in the head" when he was already incapacitated from being tasered.

Sir Mark Rowley said he was "disappointed", adding that the post was "inaccurate and misinformed".

In a strongly-worded letter to the Green leader, he added: "Your decision to criticise these officers, using your public profile and reach will have a chilling effect."

A Green Party spokesperson said Mr Polanski "knows it was a very difficult situation for the authorities".

The Stop the War Coalition is planning a major demonstration in London on May 16 to mark Nakba Day, commemorating the 1948 displacement of Palestinians during the creation of Israel.

The group has described attempts to link recent attacks with marches as "false".