Met Police officer accused of ‘shoving’ nine-year-old boy at Palestine march

A police officer has been accused of “shoving” a nine-year-old boy as he left Saturday’s March for Palestine with his parents, leaving him needing hospital treatment.

In a video of what appears to be the aftermath of the incident seen by openDemocracy, the boy’s parents ask the officer why he pushed their son and in response he says they had brought their child to a “violent protest”.

The child was taken to hospital where medics confirmed he had suffered a soft-tissue injury on his shoulder, according to his parents Abu and Saheema – who have asked us not to use their surname.

They blame the incident on the comments of former home secretary Suella Braverman, who labelled the Palestine protests “hate marches”.

“She was feeding the narrative that something bad's going to happen,” Abu said. “And then this is what happens – you take it out on the wrong people for no reason.”

The family were walking over Vauxhall Bridge back to their car following the march attended by hundreds of thousands of people. The exhausted nine-year-old walked a few paces ahead of Abu and Saheema and went to sit at the edge of a kerb, just a few metres away from a line of police officers who were facing the opposite direction.

When the boy noticed the officers start to walk in the same direction the family were going in, he got up, at which point, his parents allege that he was “shoved” out of the way by an officer who told him to move.

“He's nine years old, he's not that big, you can easily tell he's a child. It's bullying, because you're intimidating someone that's a lot smaller than you,” Abu said.

In a video published by the family on social media, Abu is heard asking the officer: “Why did you push a child?” The officer responds with: “I suggest you get away”. The officer then allegedly snatches the phone and throws it to the ground.

In a second video seen by openDemocracy, shock and distress can be heard in the parents' voices as they challenge the officer, asking why he pushed their son. The officer then turns to them and responds with: “You brought your child to a violent protest… think about what you’re doing.”

Abu then responds by saying: “Is it a violent protest? You’re making it violent. You’re making it violent – you pushed a child.”

“I saw my son on the side, and he was in absolute bits, crying and holding his shoulder,” Saheema said.

“The force that he pushed my child with, and how he went flying to one side – [there was no] compassion or care. It was with force and aggression. I could see in my son's face that he was hurt. He was in tears.”

The only people they could have kept us safe from were actually themselves

Saheema said the officer’s colleagues told them: “He's just protecting your child, he's keeping him safe.” But they believe there was nothing happening in the area around them that they needed to be protected from, particularly as they were already leaving the protest.

“So the only people they could have kept us safe from were actually themselves,” his father added.

The boy’s mother said she was “disgusted” with the reaction from the officer in question, but also by the fact that none of the other officers who witnessed the incident “stopped and showed a bit of empathy and compassion”.

The parents, who have attended multiple protests with their nine and six-year-old children, say they made the same judgement call as the hundreds of other parents at Palestine solidarity marches. “We've been to plenty of protests, and we have never had a situation where it's turned violent,” Abu said.

Police arrested more than 120 people on Saturday, most of whom were far right protesters who had mobilised to “protect” the cenotaph.

Abu said the impact of the incident on his son has been clear. As well as needing hospital treatment, he said he used to want to go everywhere with his parents but is now feeling “wary” about travelling into London and attending future protests.

“It's obviously still affecting him,” he said.

The parents are calling for anyone with footage of the incident to get in touch.

The Met Police have been contacted for comment.