Explainer

What does a longer video of the exchange between Met officer and antisemitism campaigner tell us?

Thirteen-minute video released by Sky News shows more nuanced discussion at pro-Palestinian march where officer called man ‘openly Jewish’

Harriet Sherwood

Mon 22 Apr 2024 09.13 EDT

Coverage of the exchange between Gideon Falter, the chief executive of the Campaign Against Antisemitism, and an unidentified Metropolitan police officer during a large pro-Palestinian march on Saturday initially centred on a clip released by the CAA.

In the 55-second clip, the police officer says: “You are quite openly Jewish, this is a pro-Palestinian march, I’m not accusing you of anything but I’m worried about the reaction to your presence.”

Sky News has since released a 13-minute video which shows a much longer and more nuanced exchange between Falter and the officer in Aldwych, central London.

Initial story about ‘openly Jewish’ incident not full picture, says ex-senior Met officer

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Much of the dialogue is indistinct due to the noise of the passing demonstration, or because Falter or the police officer are obscured by others while they are speaking, or because the pair are talking over one another.

The Sky video does not appear to include the comment about Falter being “openly Jewish”.

Who is in the Sky News video?

Falter is accompanied by several men, some of whom are wearing kippahs (Jewish skull caps). Falter is also carrying a bag containing his prayer shawl. One of the group appears to be filming the exchange on his phone. Two apparent members of the group are behaving as security personnel would, scanning the crowd rather than the encounter between Falter and the officer.

The police officer is unidentified, and his face is blurred in the video. There are other police officers around, some in hi-vis jackets. Most of the exchanges are between Falter and the main officer, but other officers also speak to Falter during the 13-minute video.

What is the reason for the exchange?

Falter wants to cross the road, across the path of the demonstration. The officer refuses to let him step off the pavement into the demonstration, instead offering to escort him around the march so he can reach his destination. Falter asserts he is being denied free passage across the road “because I’m Jewish”.

What is the demeanour of the officer and Falter?

Both are reasonably polite despite their differences and frustrations. Several times, Falter attempts to push his way through a cordon of police, but without using much force. The officer calls Falter “sir” throughout the exchange. At one point Falter says: “Why are you shouting at me?” The officer replies: “Because it’s loud.”

What are the key exchanges?

(This is not a complete transcript)

Officer: [It’s a] big demonstration, an awful lot of people. I’ve been dealing with people all day saying can I get across.

Falter: Because I’m Jewish.

Officer: I can already see what your mindset is, sir.

Falter: My mindset? My mindset is that I’m Jewish in London.

The officer suggests Falter is being “disingenuous”.

Falter: I’m not being disingenuous. I can do whatever the hell I want. If I want to walk to that pavement [pointing across the road], that’s what I’m going to do, and you’re going to have to arrest me. [Falter then attempts to breach a police cordon.]

Officer: I’d rather not do that.

Falter: Well then do it. I want to get out of here, I want to get across there. [Falter starts pushing against the police.]

Officer: I’d rather not, sir. I’ll tell you what, come with me, let’s get you out of here … You’re going to have to go the long way.

Falter: Why can’t I just walk where I want to walk?

Officer: Because there is a big demonstration. I will walk you out and then you can go … You want to leave, I’m offering you a route out.

Falter: The Metropolitan police says these marches are completely safe for Jews, there is no problem whatsoever. You’re telling me I cannot walk to the other pavement, that I have to be escorted.

Officer: That way you will be completely safe just as we promised, so we’re keeping our word.

Falter: You’re saying basically if I have a police escort.

Officer: I’m offering it to you, sir. I’ve already seen you deliberately leave the pavement and walk against the march. You chose to do that.

Falter: To get to the other side of the road.

Officer: It is disingenuous whether you like it or not. I will quite happily walk you there.

[Falter again tries to push through the police cordon. An unidentified voice says: the next time you try to push forward, you’ll be arrested. The officer repeats the offer to escort him.]

Falter: You’re telling me that I antagonise the crowd, that I engage in behaviour that you think is dangerous because I walked out into the road … I can’t cross the road because I’m Jewish.

Officer: No.

Falter: If I take this [his kippah] off … will you let me cross the road?

Officer: No, sir, because I’d have to follow you.

Falter: But if you trusted me to keep [it] off?

Officer: Unfortunately, I’ve already witnessed your behaviour … We’re going round in circles … I know you want to choose your route but I’ve explained several times, it’s a very big demonstration. On this particular occasion, you can’t choose your route … I don’t know how many times I can say it.

Falter: There are people shouting baby-killer and all sorts of things …

Officer: Not while I’ve been here.

Falter: … and you’ve not done a single thing about it.

Officer: I’m very sorry sir, but you’ve engaged me in conversation.

Falter: I have not engaged you in conversation, you started shoving me. [This is not seen in the Sky video]

Falter walks a few steps away and speaks with another officer, who warns him he may be arrested. Falter turns back towards the police cordon and is gently restrained by a female officer. Demonstrators begin chanting “shame on you” and “Zionist scum”.

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2024/apr/22/met-officer-antisemitism-campaigner-gideon-falter-longer-video-sky-news

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My Comment :

The act - or even better - the art of provocation as an effective weapon of advocating and forwarding the Zionist course is more than hundred years old now and fully alive and kicking these days as does prove the deliberate action of Falter.

I first stumbled upon this menace, when I read the essay written in 1929 of the then famous USA writer and journalist Vincent Sheean during and just after the so-called Hebron massacre.

He told his public, that he shortly before had been approached by the editor of a USA Jewish Chronicle, to make a sightseeing trip to Jerusalem and other places in "'The Holy Land", in order to just create some atmospheric impressions in then UK mandate Palestine.

Once having installed himself in a local hotel, he then seemingly accidentally acquainted a female Jewish journalist, who in the course of a conversation did - apparently casually - mention the occurrence of some grave upheaval in the upcoming days.

So she seemed to be in the possession of some insider information about something grave to happen in the near future, without mentioning any specifics, although she seemed to be completely informed about the exact background and nature of these occurrences during the moment she uttered them.

Small time later, Sheean does become aware of the presence of a bunch of loudly shouting "The wall is ours" and violently flag-waving behaving agent provocateurs from the ultra-Zionist and Mussolini inspired, Eretz-Israel youth movement the Betar, being founded by Zeev - the Iron Wall / the Iron Fist ideologue - Jabotinsky walking up - and along the sacred Al Aqsa Mosk over there - to the Wailing Wall.

Along with some carefully planted rumours by Zionists in Palestinians neighbourhoods, it did not take long before angry Muslim worshippers entered the scene, which ended into a terrible confrontation between – heavily outraged (by the Betar provocation) - groups of autochthonous Palestinians and some parts of the Zionist-Jewish population, which had been substantially increased from the moment, that the effect of the Balfour declaration had been kicked in.

On both sides of the implicated groups there had been a high casualty rate (deaths and wounded), not in the least because the UK police had been trying to restore the order.

In hindsight Sheean did rightly understood, that this had not only been a carefully pre-planned, highly provocative action by Zionists both in the States as in Palestine, but that the expected registration (by him as a reporter) of the bloody confrontation had been an integral part of the entire organised riots.

Because he had been paid for in advance for his reporting by the USA Zionists, he had made the decision, to immediately return the money, and pay for all the expenses by himself so he could not been pointed at as having been on the Zionist pay-roll for propaganda ends, and by doing so, he restored his independence.

He nevertheless got some heavy reproach from the Zionist editor, who sent him on the trip in the first place : the editor - who had been angry that Sheean took the occasion of writing critical reports about the occurrences in Hebron and Jerusalem, in stead of only highlighting in a partisan way, the Zionist side of the riots.

The Zionist though, had acquired one other objective of this organised riots, and that had been the allowance of the British mandate dignitaries, of being able to establish a Zionist organisation for "self defence" - another highly contaminated propaganda term, still in full use these days - that would gradually grow into the Hagana.

Zionists : Jewish-Zionist Terror organisations like the Sterngang / Lehi and the Irgun - all secretly cooperating with each other and coordinating their actions with the Hagana - did open up a full-scale attack on both the Palestinian population and on the UK Mandate holders.

Much of these attacks had the explicit objective of provoking the indigenous Palestinians into a violent counter-reaction, so the Zionists would be able, to obtain the right alibi for the justification towards the world, of starting a successful endeavour of entirely ethnically cleanse the Palestinians from their very own territory, and have Palestine exclusively for their own consumption.

P.S. There are reasons imaginable, that might justify the assumption, that also 7/10 had been carefully provoked - and allowed to happen - by the occupying Zionist settler colonialists, in order to be able to set into motion the last and final Nakba-like transfer of Palestinians into the oblivion of a neighbouring country such as Jordan and/or Egypt.