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The officer told him: “If you chose to remain here because you are causing a breach of the peace with all of these other people you will be arrested…because your presence here is antagonising a large group of people.”
Following the exchange, Mr Falter said: “I was exercising my right to walk around my home city as a Jewish Londoner. A year ago, that would not have been controversial. But now, it is.”
He added: “This is the inevitable conclusion of Sir Mark Rowley’s policy of appeasement, it is no longer safe to be openly Jewish on the streets of London when one of these so-called peace marches is taking place.”
But in a response to the row, one of Scotland Yard’s most senior officers suggested the very presence of Jewish people and counter protesters when marches were taking place was “provocative”.
Assistant Commissioner Matt Twist admitted that the footage would further dent the confidence of Jewish Londoners but said frontline officers were working in a “difficult environment”.
Use of term ‘openly Jewish’ hugely regrettable
He said: “The use of the term ‘openly Jewish’ by one of our officers is hugely regrettable. It’s absolutely not the basis on which we make decisions, it was a poor choice of words and while not intended, we know it will have caused offence to many. We apologise.
But he went on: “In recent weeks we’ve seen a new trend emerge, with those opposed to the main protests appearing along the route to express their views.
“The fact that those who do this often film themselves while doing so suggests they must know that their presence is provocative, that they’re inviting a response and that they’re increasing the likelihood of an altercation.
“They are also making it much more likely officers will intervene. They don’t do so to stifle free speech or to limit the right to protest, but to keep opposing groups apart, to prevent disorder and keep the public, including all those taking part in opposing the protest, safe. That is, after all, our primary role.”
Met to review incident
Mr Twist said the Met would review the incident to determine whether officers were getting the balance correct.
But Suella Braverman, the former Home Secretary, said while public order officers did a difficult job, there was increasing evidence of “mistakes and double standards” from the Met.
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, she said: “It’s not right that one group of people cannot exercise their rights to enjoy London peacefully in order to allow another group to express their hatred and intimidation freely. That’s striking the wrong balance.
“We’ve seen 6 months of mistakes, apologies & double standards from the police. Trust is lost as it appears that they’ve picked a side.
“If the police are failing to enforce the law out of fear of the ‘reaction’ of the mob, they are no longer policing without fear or favour.
“Nothing has changed because no-one has been held to account. Words are meaningless. Ministers and the Mayor must act. This cannot go on.”
Mr Falter denied being provocative
Mr Falter denied that he was being provocative in any way. He said : “I was identifiable as a Jew but was otherwise like any other Londoner.
“I was not part of any protest or counterprotest, and was not wearing any stickers or carrying any signs, flags or the like.”
He went on: “Despite being told repeatedly that London is safe for Jews when these marches are taking place, my interactions with police officers last Saturday show that the Met believes that being openly Jewish will antagonise the anti-Israel marchers and that Jews need protection, which the police cannot guarantee.
“Instead of addressing that threat of anti-Semitic violence, the Met’s policy instead seems to be that law-abiding Jewish Londoners should not be in the parts of London where these marches are taking place. In other words, that they are no-go zones for Jews.”
Mr Falter said his issue was not with the individual officers he spoke to but with the Met’s overall policy to the weekly marches.
Officers in ‘impossible position’
He said: “These officers are being put in an impossible position week in, week out. They are being asked to police huge protests with very few officers where there is all sorts of criminality on display from racism to glorification of terrorism and even violence, some of that violence directed against the officers themselves and so this is a very difficult situation for them as well.”
Mr Falter said he had sympathy with front-line officers and said they were being asked to “make up the Met’s policy on the hoof”.
He said: “After months of being gaslit by the Met, the truth is it is not safe for Jews to be walking in the presence of these protests.”
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