THIRTEEN people arrested under terrorism legislation during a peaceful protest in Cardiff city centre have been released on police bail, South Wales Police confirmed Sunday night.

The demonstrators, who were detained on Saturday (July 12) outside BBC Cymru Wales at Central Square, were arrested on suspicion of committing offences under Section 12 of the Terrorism Act 2000, relating to support for a proscribed organisation — namely, Palestine Action, which was officially banned by the UK Government earlier this month.

The protest formed part of a coordinated nationwide day of action organised by the civil liberties campaign Defend Our Juries, with similar demonstrations held in London, Manchester, Derry, and Leeds. Many participants held signs reading: “I oppose genocide. I support Palestine Action” — echoing the slogan that led to 29 arrests in London a week earlier.

A police spokesperson said those arrested in Cardiff were held for an initial 24 hours, with a Superintendent’s extension of a further 12 hours granted. “The investigation is being led by Counter Terrorism Policing Wales with support from South Wales Police,” the statement read. “All 13 have now been released on police bail. Enquiries are ongoing.”

Peaceful protests, sweeping arrests

Saturday’s actions were explicitly organised to test the legal boundaries of the government’s recent move to criminalise support for Palestine Action, a group known for targeting UK-based arms companies with direct action protests over their links to Israeli military operations.

Organisers say they informed police and the Home Office in advance, challenging what they describe as a “dangerous and undemocratic proscription that equates protest with terrorism.”

Demonstrations were held at high-profile symbolic locations, including the Gandhi statue in Parliament Square, the Emmeline Pankhurst statue in Manchester, and outside BBC Wales in Cardiff. In Derry, a separately organised solidarity event took place at the Guildhall.

While the protests remained peaceful, police made at least 86 arrests across the UK on Saturday alone, bringing the total since Palestine Action’s ban came into force to nearly 120, with further arrests reported in Scotland, Bradford, and abroad, including at British embassies in The Hague and Copenhagen.

Charlotte Church and public figures speak out

The crackdown has triggered widespread alarm among campaigners, civil liberties groups, and public figures. Welsh singer and activist Charlotte Church is among hundreds who signed an open letter denouncing the proscription as “a major assault on our freedoms.”

“When people stand up to injustice, those in power often reach for the same old playbook: label dissent as dangerous, criminalise protest, and try to silence movements for change,” Church said. “From the suffragettes to the civil rights movement, what was once condemned as radical disruption is now celebrated as moral courage.”

The letter has also been signed by legal academics, human rights lawyers, elected officials from SNP, Plaid Cymru, and Labour, and campaigners such as Angie Zelter and Leanne Wood, the former leader of Plaid Cymru. Glasgow Trades Union Council, the Haldane Society of Socialist Lawyers, and four UN special rapporteurs have all criticised the ban.

Controversial vote and legal challenge ahead

The Government’s order to proscribe Palestine Action passed the House of Commons on 2 July by 385 votes to 26. Critics have pointed out that the group was listed alongside two white supremacist organisations — the Maniacs Murder Cult and the Russian Imperial Movement — which they say pressured MPs into supporting the order without sufficient scrutiny.

The group’s proscription came shortly after activists targeted military aircraft at RAF Brize Norton, spraying red paint in the engines in protest against UK arms exports to Israel. Palestine Action’s activities are subject to ongoing legal proceedings, with a judicial review of the proscription order due in the High Court on 21 July.

Allegations of political interference

Defend Our Juries also raised concerns about alleged interference in the UK legal process. Documents obtained via Freedom of Information requests reportedly show contact between the UK government and the Israeli embassy, including pressure on the Crown Prosecution Service to retry activists whose cases had been dismissed.

A spokesperson for the campaign said: “Are these people holding up signs serious criminals committing terror crimes? Or are they ordinary, decent people, exercising their democratic rights and taking a stand against corruption, injustice, and genocide? Make up your own mind.”

What’s next?

Campaigners say they will not back down. More protests are expected in the coming days, and organisers have pledged to challenge the law in court and in public. Meanwhile, those released on bail remain under investigation, facing the possibility of prosecution under terrorism laws that carry a maximum sentence of 14 years for expressions of support.

The central question remains: Can peaceful protest still exist in a country that now brands cardboard signs as terrorism?