After standing barefoot and clutching a Palestine flag atop Big Ben’s clock tower for almost 16 hours, a man was taken into custody, reports Breaking News.
Images from the incident show the man being hoisted to the ground in a cherry picker after he mounted the Elizabeth Tower on Saturday morning and eventually descended just after midnight on Sunday.
In a statement issued just after 1am, the force said: “The man has now been arrested. This has been a protracted incident due to the specifics of where the man was located and the need to ensure the safety of our officers, the individual and the wider public. We worked with other agencies including the London Fire Brigade and deployed specialist officers to bring this incident to a close as quickly as possible whilst minimising risk to life,” reports Breaking News.
“We have been in close liaison with the Parliamentary Estate throughout and all roads have been reopened,” reports Breaking News.
The barrier, which ran from Bridge Street to Westminster Bridge, was guarded by scores of uniformed police officers, and emergency personnel had been there.
Late on Saturday, there were also two fire engines, two aerial ladder platforms, an ambulance from an incident response team, and normal ambulances, reports Breaking News.
The man said he would come down “on his own terms” to negotiators from the ledge he was sitting on in a video that was uploaded to Instagram on Saturday night.
Negotiators on an aerial ladder platform in the video seem to express worry over a foot injury, stating that there is “quite a lot of blood” and that his clothing was too warm when the temperature plummeted after dusk, reports Breaking News.
But the man insisted he was safe, saying: “I will come down on my own terms, I have said this. But right now I am saying I am safe. If you come towards me you are putting me in danger and I will climb higher.”
A tiny group of supporters behind the police barrier at Victoria Embankment shouted “Free Palestine” and “You are a hero” in the afternoon, reports Breaking News.
Videos that were shared on social media early Saturday showed the man seemingly scaling a barrier that surrounded the Houses of Parliament without any security personnel in sight.
Ben Obese-Jecty, a Conservative MP, stated on X that the man’s entry onto the parliamentary estate must be explained.
He said: “Every day in Parliament I see dozens of armed police officers patrolling Portcullis House and the parliamentary estate. Where were they today? On Monday there needs to be a full explanation to MPs and staff as to how this protester was able to evade security so easily,” reports Breaking News.
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