Richard Medhurst fears UK using his arrest to silence dissent
4 Min Read
British Journalist Richard Medhurst stresses that his arrest on terrorism charges was a result of his reporting on Palestine against the Israeli atrocities in the Gaza Strip.
-
British journalist, Richard Medhurst, at the Sobh Media Festival on May 21, 2024. (Sobh Media Festival)
A British journalist recently arrested in the UK says he was targeted for his reporting on "Israel’s" war on Gaza, cautioning that this could be an attempt to pave the way for silencing all critical voices.
Richard Medhurst was detained at London’s Heathrow Airport on August 15, facing charges under Section 12 of the UK’s Terrorism Act of 2000. He was held at a police station for over 24 hours, where officers accused him of "allegedly expressing an opinion or belief that is supportive of a prescribed organization."
Describing his ordeal, Medhurst detailed that he was removed from the plane by six officers, with five of them in plain clothes and one in tactical gear. "They called me by name and told me to come to the front of the plane … Then they marched me off," he told Anadolu in a video interview.
"They took me to a room on the side, and then they told me that I was being arrested under Section 12 of the Terrorism Act of 2000 … I said I wanted to contact my family, but they told me I was not allowed to. They made it very clear I’m not allowed to speak to anyone."
Read next: Twenty UK arms sellers warned of complicity in Israeli war crimes
He said he was then subjected to a search and handcuffed, explaining that "It was like they were treating me like a serial killer or something, which is crazy."
Medhurst was taken to a police station and left waiting for about 13 hours before being questioned by two detectives. According to him, the officers refused to provide him with a change of clothes, and he also had to ask for water several times before being handed "a small glass, maybe after several hours."
"They’re recording you in the cell the whole time, both audio and video. Even when you sleep, when you go to the toilet, you’re being recorded," said the journalist.
‘Losing our rights in the West’
Although he was never given a clear reason for his arrest, Medhurst is confident that it is related to his reporting on "Israel's" aggression against Palestinians and the UK's complicity in those actions.
"I’m not at liberty to say what they asked me, but the reason that they arrested me and the reason they’re targeting me, as far as I can gather, is because of my reporting on Palestine," he said, adding that the British government is "angry at my work."
"Basically, what I’m trying to do as a journalist is just provide a counterweight to mainstream media, because the media that we have in England and in the West, it’s just 100% pro-Israel and they’re just lying … I don’t feel that the media tell the truth, so I tried to fix that myself by telling the truth."
He warned that his arrest sets a troubling precedent that could be used to target others.
"They’re trying to make an example out of me. They’re trying to make this acceptable and then use this against other people," he asserted.
"I’m afraid that it won’t stop here. I feel that they will continue doing this and, as we see this genocide in Gaza continuing, we’re also losing our rights in the West at the same time."
