A man, barefoot and carrying a Palestinian flag, has remained perched on a ledge several meters up Big Ben’s Elizabeth Tower in London, despite numerous hours of negotiations with emergency services.
The incident occurred on Saturday morning when the man climbed onto the tower at the Palace of Westminster. The Metropolitan Police were promptly called to the scene at 07:24 GMT. The situation has led to the closure of Westminster Bridge and the cancellation of Parliament tours.
The intruder, who filmed his ascent, claimed to be protesting against “police repression and state violence.”
As of now, at least nine emergency service vehicles are lined up on Bridge Street, with crowds gathered beyond a police cordon. Three emergency personnel were lifted up on a fire brigade aerial ladder platform around 10:00 GMT, attempting to reach the man on the ledge. One of them used a megaphone to communicate with the climber.
Negotiations continued throughout the day and into the night, but the man has yet to come down as Big Ben chimed at 21:00 GMT.
The incident began when the man entered the grounds of Parliament, ascended a few steps, swiftly climbed onto a railing, and then ascended the side of Elizabeth Tower. At one point, he removed his shoes to gain a higher vantage point, but this action resulted in foot injuries, and patches of blood can be seen on the tower’s stonework.
Within minutes of the incident, police on the ground approached the man and inquired about his safety. He responded, assuring them that he was safe and stated that he would descend when he was ready.
Throughout the day, photographs captured the man sitting on the ledge, holding the Palestinian flag and wrapping a traditional Palestinian keffiyeh scarf around the decorative stonework of the tower.
A small group of supporters, pinned behind the police cordon at Victoria Embankment, could be heard shouting “Free Palestine” and “You Are A Hero.” These individuals appeared to be showing their support for the man who had scaled Elizabeth Tower.
Officers imposed a condition on protest activity near Parliament Square to prevent serious disruptions, the Metropolitan Police Service (Met) announced.
As a result, the pro-Palestinian protesters were instructed to relocate from Bridge Street to a nearby location called Richmond Terrace.
Bridge Street, situated at the northern end of Westminster Bridge, had earlier been closed to facilitate the emergency services’ response to the incident, along with Westminster Bridge itself.
It is understood that one exit of Westminster Tube station was also temporarily closed, but there was no disruption to Tube services. Passengers were advised to use alternative exits.
Furthermore, tours of the Parliamentary Estate were canceled as emergency services actively responded to the situation.
A parliamentary spokesperson stated that Parliament takes security extremely seriously, but they refrain from disclosing specific details about their security measures or mitigations.
In a separate development, dozens of protesters embarked on a march near the Houses of Parliament following the cancellation of a planned rally near the BBC’s headquarters due to police intervention.
A spokesperson for the London Fire Brigade (LFB) reported that crews from Lambeth, Chelsea, Soho, and Islington fire stations were actively responding to the incident alongside the police.
Reuters
The London Ambulance also dispatched an ambulance crew, an incident response officer, and members of its hazardous area response team (HART) to the scene.
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