Jewish boy horrified as Palestine mob 'rip up hostage poster and hurl abuse'

A Jewish schoolboy has been left shaken after a group of pro-Palestine protesters tore up his hostage poster and hurled abuse at him. The teenager was staging a silent stand against weekly rallies in Liverpool city centre and in support of hostages held in Gaza after Hamas's October 7 attacks on Israel.

The 16-year-old, identified only by his first name, Akiva, stood at the side of marchers dressed in an Israel football shirt, wearing a kippah head covering and holding a poster with pictures of hostages which read: "Our love is stronger than your hate. Bring them home."

But protesters have been accused of tearing the poster from him, shouting in his face and hurling abuse, with one allegedly lashing out at the boy with his wooden placard.

Footage posted on social media shows Akiva standing outside an M&S in Liverpool city centre as marchers file past while two stewards stand next to the boy urging protesters to move on.

Akiva told Express.co.uk: "I feel that we need to understand that these protests are not peaceful like they claim and are a breeding ground for hate. Shame on Merseyside Police for allowing these hate filled mobs to go unchecked."

Merseyside Police has said there was a visible police presence at the march and anti-semitism will not be tolerated in any form. The force said officers are now investigating a report of an assault.

Akiva's mum Sara, who would only give her first name for fear of any repercussions, told Express.co.uk her son was shaken by what happened, but was determined the mob wouldn't stop him.

She said: "It got aggressive very quickly. Within seconds someone ripped part of the poster from his hands. He couldn't even recover before one man came and ripped the rest of the poster from his hands and gave him a shove.

"He decided to stay there. He just stood there, but the abuse continued... He was screamed at. He was verbally abused. One man hit him with a placard. It was all very, very frightening really. He was just being a Jew.

"He was just standing there calmly and peacefully. That should not be provocative in Britain today."

Sara said there were no police officers nearby, and questioned whether the march itself was adequately policed. According to Akiva's mum, there are weekly pro-Palestine rallies in Liverpool, with Akiva first taking a stand two weeks ago.

But she said at the previous march there were police protecting her son and it passed off without trouble. Sara said: "It was fairly benign. People were congratulating him."

She claimed that when the family eventually found the police, they were told to avoid the protesters. Sara said: "They just didn't seem bothered...What happened was really unexpected. We just expected it to be an uneventful attempt to show Liverpool there's another side to this story. We even thought we could sit down and talk to the other side. But it got very nasty very quickly."

Det Ch Insp Andrew McCourt said: "There was a visible police presence which had officers from different units accompany the protesters as they marched through the city centre."

He said the force is aware of footage being circulated on social media and urged people not to share it as it could be prejudicial to the ongoing investigation.

The officer said: "Merseyside Police respects the right to protest and expression of views. Our officers were in the city centre to ensure the safety of protestors and other members of the public, but aggressive and abusive behaviour of this kind will not be tolerated."

DCI McCourt added: "Here at Merseyside Police we believe everyone should be able to live their lives without fear of being subjected to verbal, or physical abuse. We know the impact the conflict in the Middle East is having around the world and we are supporting those communities affected on Merseyside, including our officers and staff who have friends in Israel and Palestine.

"Antisemitism, racial, and faith-based discrimination will not be tolerated in any form. Policing takes all reports of hate crime seriously because we know that they have a devastating impact on individual victims and targeted communities."

Sara said her son won't stage another silent stand again if there aren't any police around to ensure his safety. She said: "These are not peaceful protests unless the police are there. It's too dangerous."

The concerned mum added: "Everybody has a right to free speech, but people have to be safe. People should be able to walk around showing their Jewish identity without fear. That's not happening. This shows it's not possible when these protests are there."

She said: "Most Jewish people feel deeply connected to what is happening in Israel. Most people also feel great sympathy for innocent Gazans as well. We as a family feel for both, but there's another side to the story."

DCI McCourt said Merseyside Police has a policing plan in place to ensure the right to lawful protest while allowing members of the public to go about their normal daily business.

Liverpool Friends of Palestine appears to have organised Sunday's march from Liverpool's Catholic Cathedral to Derby Square. Express.co.uk has approached the group for comment.

The incident in Liverpool came after thousands of people took part in a march in London on Saturday (June 8), calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Marching outside Downing Street, protesters waved flags and placards, chanting slogans including "free, free Palestine" and "in our thousands, in our millions, we are all Palestinians".

Various speakers, including the Palestinian ambassador to the UK, Husam Zomlot, gave speeches from a stage outside Parliament.

Mr Zomlot said: "I am running out of words not only to describe the horror we are witnessing every single day, I am running out of words to help me understand how world leaders, how mainstream media cannot see, cannot report, cannot act.

"I have questions. How do they sleep when they see the pictures of skeletal children shaking with fear?"

Pro-Palestine protests have taken place in Britain for weeks since Hamas gunmen attacked and killed 1,139 and took dozens of hostages on October 7.

Tens of thousands of people have died in Gaza since Israel launched its offensive in response to the attacks.