Richard Medhurst @richimedhurst
We have entered an intellectual dark age in the West. Free speech and freedom of thought are being assailed by governments through lawfare. Journalists, academics, and tech entrepreneurs who speak out against Israel’s genocide, or who refuse to help participate in the crackdown and censorship of “unruly” opinions are made examples of. From @MaryKostakidis in Australia, to @RealScottRitter in the US, to Pavel in France, to the misuse of the Terrorism Act against @Pal_action and myself in Britain.. We are headed in a very, very bad direction.
Richard Medhurst @richimedhurst is a British independent journalist.
“I was arrested at Heathrow Airport under the Terrorism Act, Sec 12 because of my reporting. 6 police officers were waiting for me at the entrance of the aircraft. I was held for almost 24 hours and questioned. I believe I’m the first journalist to be arrested under this provision of the Terrorism Act. I feel that this is a political persecution and hampers my ability to work as a journalist.”
“I find it amazing that Israeli media reported on my arrest (the first of its kind in Britain), but UK mainstream media stayed silent. Had they protested this gross abuse of power and attack on journalism, maybe the police wouldn’t dare carry out further Sec 12 arrests, now targeting activists. Why do these people even bother working in the press?”
28 August: Activist and long-time campaigner for Palestine Sarah Wilkinson was arrested at her home early this morning. She faces up to 14 years in jail under Section 12 of the Terrorism Act if convicted.
Testimony from Jack Wilkinson @JackWilkinsonAA “The police came to her house just before 7.30am. 12 of them in total, some of them in plain clothes from the counter terrorism police. They said she was under arrest for “content that she has posted online.” Her house is being raided & they have seized all her electronic devices”.
On August 28, FBI and DHS officers detained and interrogated @profdannyshaw
at Chicago’s O’Hare after he returned from the Free Palestine Film Festival in London According to Shaw, agents from the FBI’s Chicago Field Office grilled him for three hours about his Palestine solidarity activism, demanded to know the name of his contacts and of any organizations he has worked with, and denied him the right to speak with a lawyer. When he refused to answer questions, he was told he would not be released until he complied. He said the agents seized his cell phone, computer, notebooks, and other belongings, and asked hundreds of questions about his work and personal life. Shaw was fired by John Jay College of Criminal Justice in April following a coordinated Israel lobby pressure campaign, in which comments he made at a rally against Israel’s Gaza genocide were distorted to falsely paint him as antisemitic https://trtworld.com/opinion/us-professor-i-was-censored-doxed-and-fired-because-of-gaza-17715303
Patrick Henningsen @21WIRE PROFESSOR DANNY SHAW, AN ADVOCATE FOR PALESTINIAN HUMAN RIGHTS, DETAINED BY FBI & DHS IN CHICAGO’S O’HARE AIRPORT Former heavyweight boxer, now academic and international human rights campaigner, was detained and interrogated by the FBI and DHS on August 28, 2024, at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport following his appearance at the Free #Palestine Film Festival in London. Clearly, this is a political persecution by the Biden Administration at the orders of the Israel state and its foreign lobby based in U.S., and likely in close coordination with other allied intelligence agency partners, in this case Britain. Shaw, a very public and visible human rights advocate who is actively campaigning for numerous people globally including in other places such as Haiti and Indonesia, was recently fired from his position at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York City for his vocal opposition to Israel’s brutal genocide in Gaza. During his 3 hour interrogation by federal agents, the FBI is said to have pressured Shaw for information regarding his pro-human rights and anti-genocide activism, and even went so far as to demand the names of contacts and organizations with which he has worked with. He was also denied the right to speak with a lawyer and was told he would not be released until he complied with government demands. Federal agents then seized all his electronic devices, notebooks, and personal belongings. Journalist, author and human rights activist @CraigMurrayOrg on Shaw’s detention: “A co-ordinated attack across the western former democracies. Danny Shaw was arrested returning from speaking alongside me on a panel at the Free Palestine International Film Festival.“
This is an utterly shocking account from journalist Sarah Wilkinson of her recent violent arrest by 16 counter-terrorism police, several masked, at 7.30am. They smashed up, or stole, many of her belongings; emptied an urn of her mother’s remains over the floor; have denied her the right to touch any electronic device, even a phone, though she has a potentially life-threatening medical condition; stolen her passport, which she needs to produce or it will lead to a bail infraction and possibly a five-year jail term; and much else besides. She has, of course, been stripped of the right to do journalism. All of this under Section 12 of the draconian Terrorism Act. This is clearly intended as a campaign of terror, meant to intimidate others from speaking up about Israel’s genocide in Gaza. We are being reminded that you don’t need to be a Julian Assange to be targeted and have your life turned upside down. We are being reminded that ultimately the UK is a police state – and that our freedoms are a gift from those who rule over us. Listen to Sarah Wilkinson here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=WjwycG_9Ujo…