Security Minister Tom Tugendhat has been asked to investigate a major security breach after it emerged that anti-Israel pro-Palestinian protesters were allowed to set up a protest camp without permission in the middle of Whitehall.
Express.co.uk broke the news that the camp had been set up next to the Cenotaph near Downing Street sarking fury from Conservative MPs.
But both Westminster Council and the Metropolitan Police have said that they did not give permission for it to be constructed which has caused a major alarm with Whitehall being one of the most sensitive security areas in the world.
Cities of London and Westminster MP Nickie Aiken, a former leader of Westminster Council, has contacted Mr Tugendhat to investigate what happened.
She told Express.co.uk: “It is extremely worrying that neither the police nor council claim they gave permission for the rally to take place around the Cenotaph.”
She added: “If this is a case this is a serious security breach in a security zone. I’ve asked the Security Minister to look into the matter.”
Ms Aiken is not the only Conservative MP to contact Mr Tugendhat on the issue.
Bassetlaw MP Brendan Clarke-Smith has also been in touch and has voiced concerns that supporters of the terror group Hamas which was responsible for the brutal attacks on Israel last week have been seen openly flouting pro-terror symbols among the protesters.
There was fury that the police failed to arrest people with the black para glider symbols celebrating Hamas’s October 7 attack which saw more than 1,400 Israeli citizens murdered including babies beheaded and children burnt to death.
Mr Clarke-Smith told Express.co.uk that what happened in Whitehall next to the Cenotaph was “a major security issue if people can just pitch up and do that.”
While the protest camp had been cleared away by this morning the row has focussed minds on whether the UK should ban anti-Israel demonstrations in the wake of the attacks by Hamas.
Other European countries including France have officially banned the protests although this led to clashes with police in Paris over the weekend.
There have been concerns that pro-Palestinian supporters have been allowed to openly celebrate Hamas terrorist atrocities on the streets without the police intervening even though they were breaking the law.
One of the incidents took place in front of a Jewish restaurant with Channel 4’s Rachel Riley present while Hamas supporters intimidated children.
